Reinforcement by what Skinner called the verbal community is responsible for the shaping and maintenance of what is uniquely human. Reinforcement follows the logic of the society in which it occurs. We cannot effectively manage and shape behaviors that we cannot directly observe, with the result that they become incoherent and chaotic. This, of course, produces the stuff of psychoanalysis, dreams, and nightmares. Change itself is one of the great unifying principles of psychology, and the management of change must be a matter of central concern for psychology.
Nothing stays the same.
Our survival, both as individuals and as species, depends upon our ability to meet the challenge of ever increasing change. Chapter 3 Last updated on Sunday, July 27, 1997.