Hopeless Man-made Idea Series (Idea #1)

Skinner, B.F. Beyond Freedom & Dignity. Indianapolis: Hackett, 1971.

          Burrhus F. Skinner (1904-1990), Ph.D., is possibly the most famous behavioral psychologist in 20th-century American history. Skinner served as the Pierce Professor of Psychology at Harvard from 1948 until his retirement in 1974 (rear cover). A controversial work in its day (and frowned upon by Christians even today), Beyond Freedom and Dignity, is Skinner’s “definitive statement about humankind and society” (rear)

          Skinner’s thesis is that persons and species are influenced and shaped by “evolutionary contingencies of survival,” bringing their behaviors under the control of their world. He writes, “Freedom is not due to a will to be free but to certain behavioral processes characteristic of the human organism” (42). A “technology of behavior,” he says, can advance the behavioral sciences similar to physics and biology and destroy any so-called 'archaic' belief in an “autonomous man” (5–25, 211).

          One weakness of Skinner’s argument (besides its non-biblical position) is that it relies heavily on assumptions that he does not address or defend. He assumes or asserts without evidence that God is fictional, and sin does not exist (201), that the theory of evolution is indisputable (25, 29, 31), that good behavior in humans is because people are “innately good or controlled” (84), that emerging unspecified studies (circa the 1970s) will affirm “the selective role of the environment in shaping and maintaining [human behavior]” (25), that physiology will eventually explain how behavior relates to antecedent events (194), that our behavior is molded externally—removing human freedoms to “deliberate, decide, and act” (101). Skinner views notions of human freedom as representing antiquated thinking and hopes to abolish them in the name of forward progress (200).

          In stark contrast, the Bible upholds a view of humanity that emphasizes individual moral responsibility and the inherent dignity given by God. According to biblical teachings, humans are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), endowed with responsibility and the capacity to choose between good and evil (ex., Deut. 30:19, Joshua 24:15), all of which form the basis of moral responsibility. This spiritual dimension acknowledges the complexity of human nature and the possibility of transcending base instincts through choices aligned with God's Word and law (helped by the Holy Spirit, John 15:26, 16:7-11), fundamentally opposing the reductionist approach of Skinner's behaviorism that sees humans merely as products of their environment.

          Ironically, for Christians, one benefit to reading a man-made set of ideas like those offered by Skinner is that they brazenly illustrate the height and depth of mankind’s foolishness apart from God. Behavioral psychology offers an utterly hopeless and unsatisfying perspective on life (215). Humanity is acted upon, controlled, and reduced to animalistic behaviors “within the range of scientific analysis” (201). Progress means the inner man is destroyed, and environmental control is the basis of social change for the better (215).  Conclusion? Always look to God's Wisdom and test man's wisdom!