Verbal behavior by Skinner under Chomsky's review

Abstract

In some articles like “ Formal Analysis and Functional Analysis of Verbal Behavior: Notes on the Debate between Chomsky and Skinner” (1976) and “The case against B. F. Skinner 45 years later: An encounter with N. Chomsky” (2006) we can appreciate that in a book in which some theories developed by a prestigious psychologist are consistently supported, the idea that the veracity of the arguments is doubted may be contradictory. In this case, in 1957 when this book was published, the way in which this author described verbal behavior was not in question. Some of the reasons could be his reputation or the detailed way of explaining concepts through examples by laboratory experiments. Skinner's “Verbal Behavior” explains the Behaviorist Theory that expresses the way language is acquired in childhood. Through this research, the most relevant aspects of each chapter are provided, showing the author's coherence. Each point is questioned by a linguist named Noam Chomsky, bringing his own arguments and deconstructing it through Innatism. For this linguist, children are biologically prepared to learn a language and the environment is a contribution. In 1959, Chomsky published his review of the book and was supported by a great part of the population. In order to know the trajectory of each one in life and their professional achievements, the biography of both is explained in detail. In addition, it includes a linguistic evolution that allows us to locate this fact and some methods, theories or important concepts in the course of linguistics.