Do you think Watson’s behaviorism would have become so popular without the earlier work of the functional psychologists? Explain your answer.
Several young psychologists and students found his propositions for the psychology of behavior compelling, asserting that Watson was cleaning the blurred atmosphere of psychology by taking out longstanding enigmas brought along with philosophy.
Calkins, a psychologist disagreed with ideologies of Watson. Questioning his introspection rejection, she talked for several psychologists believing that some processes of psychology can be studied by introspection only.
The discussions about introspection continued for years. Washburn ended up calling Watson as the enemy of psychological studies. Support for movements by Watson grew, specifically among young psychologists.
By 1920s, universities started offering plans and courses in subject of behaviorism and the term started becoming admissible in the journals which were professional. By the year of 1930, Watson proclaimed insolently that behaviorism was very significant and universities could not prevent teaching it.
The movement of behaviorism did succeed; however, the changes asked by Watson in 1913 came around gradually. And when these arrived finally, Watson’s was not the only kind of psychology of behavior being advocated.
When psychology of science began formally, it was ambitious to associate itself respectable, older, well-developed science, which is natural, of physics. The novel psychology adapted methods of science which was natural to its own requirements. This habit is very overt with behaviorism.
Watson contended that psychology curbs itself to the information of sciences which are natural, to what can be seen. To keep it simple, psychology should curb itself to the detached behavioral studies.
Only the strictly detached methods of examination were adequate in the laboratory of the behaviorists. According to Watson, such methods comprised of, a) observation without and with the usage of instruments, b) methods of testing, c) methods of verbal report and d) methods of reflexes which were conditioned.
Observation is an essential base for fellow methods. Detached methods of testing were in usage already, however, Watson expected that results of the test should be treated like samples from behavior instead of signals of qualities of mind.