4. B.F SKINNER

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Skinner’s Social development theory of operant learning believed human behavior to be driven not by internal thought processes or motivations, but by external factors, namely positive and negative reinforcements such as reward or punishment. He believed behavior superseded by pleasantness or reward would be repeated and believed this to be the vehicle for behavior modification, which facilitates development, progression and learning; constant repetition of action leads to behavioral change. His theory calls upon extrinsic motivations (rewards such as points or level advancements perhaps directly  applicable to my document) and remains relevant today, used to manipulate the conduct of children to enhance desired qualities in educational settings, the home, and furthermore technology.

I believe the references to positive reinforcements and extrinsic motivation are important for me to further investigate in relation to the way they are used in existing media such as television, games, applications and other technological forms to engage with children. The advantages and disadvantages of said method need to be explored, as well as pre existing applications in support of this behavioral and learning theory in order for me to gain clarity on the successful balance of implementing extrinsic motivation, intrinsic motivation or a balance of both. Specifically in classrooms and nurseries Skinners theory is utilized through three learning methods; prompting, chaining and shaping, which I believe can all be successfully translated into a format compliant with interactive media; such as a mobile application. He touches upon several associated subject areas warranting further research and exploration as well providing a solid building block of supported knowledge about my chosen audience which will reinforce the structure of my document.