The very first invited speaker of my first graduate semester at Iowa
(Sept. 1958) was B.F. Skinner. Although Skinner spent the entire day on
campus, the only exchange between Spence and Skinner was a curt "Hi, Fred"
and and an equally ceremonious "Hello, Ken." We first-year graduate
students were taken aback by this obvious absence of discourse between the
two famous psychologists and, after puzzling over it for a few days,
decided to ask Spence about it. His response was that Skinner had been
upset with him (Spence) for a number of years. Why? Spence had written a
book called "Theories of Learning" without including a chapter on Skinner.
When Skinner asked Spence why he was excluded from Spence's book, Spence's
answer was, "You don't have a theory. All you have are empirical laws and
principles, but no theory that ties them together."
End of story and end of their relationship!
Take care,
Hank
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Hank Goldstein, Ph.D. | PHONE: (319) 588-6305
Department of Psychology | FAX: (319) 588-6789
Clarke College | EMAIL: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Dubuque, IA 52001 |
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"You can always spot a well-informed person; her/his views are the
same as yours."
Ilka Chase [paraphrased]
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