Association for Behavior Analysis International

Skinner delivered his paper "Why are we not acting to save the world" in 1982 to the APA. The article was later included in his collection of papers "Upon Further Reflection" (1987). Skinner reviewed the state of the world and provided a behaviorally based conceptual analysis as an answer to the question posed in the title. Skinner expressed his thoughts on how to avoid an untimely end to the world. This paper will take measure of the state of the world today as compared to Skinner's view in 1982. The authors provide a critical review of Skinner's analysis and proposals in light of contemporary events. Alternative behavioral analyses are offered as well as ideas for effective action.

In general, people tenaciously believe they possess free will despite the overwhelming scientific consensus that all human behavior is determined by environmental stimuli. Among scientists, Skinner has consistently and forcefully argued that the belief in free will is an artifact of human behavior in his view, a now-dysfunctional product of the literatures of freedom and dignity. I will examine and discuss this paradox between subjective experience and objective analysis by arguing that the almost-universal belief in free will is a product of evolution and thereby an adaptive human characteristic. In addition to behavior analysis and biology, I will draw on nonscientific sources of knowledge, including historical, cultural, philosophical, literary, and religious contributions, to shed light on the nature and interpretation of this very central question of human existence. In this 100th year of Skinners birth, I will discuss the wisdom of adhering to the dominant behavior analytic understanding of free will; contrary to Skinners contention, the pervasive human belief in free will, even if scientifically wrong, may well contribute to social progress rather than impede it.

100 years after Skinner's birth, the promise of the science he in turn birthed remains strong. Which behavior analyst(s) will win the Nobel Peace Prize is of course unknown--and is unimportant, since the science of behavior at its best is a collective enterprise, not a cult of personality. That science may not even be labeled "behavior analysis" at that point. Nonetheless, violence is behavior; behavior can be analyzed and shaped; and the potential aggregate consequences of efforts to do so are enormous. It is therefore hard to imagine that this work will not ultimately be extensively pursued, despite substantial political obstacles. (Significantly, the US Surgeon General has already turned to behavior analytic science in the recent report on Youth Violence, for example.) This presentation will review promising emerging work related to reducing individual and collective violence (including terrorism and war) and constructing nonviolent alternatives. It will then outline a plan of research for advancing this work in substantive ways. The presentation will draw on basic behavior analytic theory, emerging principles from applied cultural analysis, and existing empirical work.