The Linacre Quarterly Volume 9 | Number 4 Article 5 October 1941 The trS ucture and Function of Mind in Behaviorism Warren J. Barker Follow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq Recommended Citation Barker, Warren J. (1941) "The trS ucture and Function of Mind in Behaviorism," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 9 : No. 4 , Article 5. Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol9/iss4/5 THE LINACRE QUARTERLY THE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF MIND IN BEHAVIORISM BY REVEREND WARREN J . BARKER, S.J. NEW ORLEANS, LA. (Condusion) D espite all the technical scien­ both use the same system of arcs tific language with which Watson and paths. has veneered his mechanical ex­ Dr. Watson's mechanical and planation of man's actions the neural explanation of mind differs common-sense man fails to be im­ in few respects from that offered pressed. Wonderful indeed, but by Prof. Mandalay, and other ma­ we may ask where is the logic terialistic and radical philoso­ which he claims as the tool of the phers. But where he agrees, behaviorist. Our respect for Dr. there he diverges. Where they Watson as a man of science is postulate the occurrence of such waning. He has mi staken the mere reflexes in a conscious subject, instrument, the mere operation for our behaviorist denies to the sub­ the cause itself-he has explained j ect even the knowledge and per­ the mechanics, the function, but ception of its own actions. The he has ignored the man behind the Behaviorist finds no consciousness guns. At best this hypothesis "in his laboratories, none in his only explains the apparatus the subjects," and concludes that intellect uses in controlling the ex­ therefore it is non-existent. "All ternal bodily movements, and schools of psychology", says Dr. leaves as shrouded in mystery as Watson, "except that of Behav­ ~ ver the nature of the operator. iorism claim that 'Consciousness' The very control that it exercises is the subject matter of psychol­ on the bodily organs remains as ogy. Behaviorism, on the con­ yet the unknown X. An impulse trary, claims that 'consciousness' coming from the will in man and is neither a definable nor usable by which the system of arcs and concept." "This thing we call paths is set in motion is something consciousness can be analyzed altogether different from an im­ only by introspection-a looking pulse coming from without. It is in on what goes on inside of us. a well known fact that muscle In 1912 the Behaviorists reached tired out by external stimulation the conclusion tha t they could no and no longer responding to such longer be content to work with in­ a stimulus will in the same condi- tangibles and unapproachable ." tion respond to an impulse from D eni al of the validity of intro­ t he will. The impulses from the spection has thus r endered Behav­ will and the impulse from without iorism the unscientific muddle that are by no means id entical though it is, and in this deni al we find the [ 90 ] THE LIN ACRE QUARTERLY key to the whole of behavioristic every real observer of human be­ psychology. havior as the crawling and crying Dr. Watson claims it unscien­ of the infant? It is common sense, tific to admit of introspection in as well as philosophical, to postu­ his system; we hold it unpsycho­ late a cause for that observable logical to deny it. A real psychol­ and objective phenomenon of ogy IS built not merely upon man's awareness of his own action either the subjective or objective l'iO continually expressed by the method of observation alone, but pronoun, I. Would Dr. Watson a harmony of both. Neither can have us delete this part of speech we admit with Watson that intro­ from our vocabulary? Hardly, spection is either illogical or un­ for he is constantly using it him­ scientific. Far more unscientific self. In his usual illogical ]Way he · it is to build a psychology totall_y denies consciousness in one breath ignoring facts which are evident and admits it in another. He is to all but those blinded by preju­ quite aware that it was J. B. W at­ dice or ignorance. Dr. Watson's son who stood watching white rats motive or intention in closing his m his laboratory m 1903 from eyes to facts obtruded upon his which observance he formulated vision at every turn of his work his psychology. He is certainly is neither our business or desire conscious that he is the author of to judge. Psychology from the Standpoint Consciousness IS the most ob­ of a Behaviorist, for he agam trusive fact in the world, and Wl' and again speaks of "my" book. may define it as "that reflex oper­ Is consciOusness definable or ation (not m the behavioristic usable? Let Dr. Watson be sense) by which the mind attends struck by a flying brick and he'll to itself and recognizes its actions quickly know the distinction be­ il as its own." Take a concrete, ob­ tween consciOusness and uncon­ jective example, as this is more in sciOusness. the behavioristic line, of a man Once again we must approach asleep and a man awake. The one the behavioristic fold of eiTors is neither aware of those walking and draw forth anothet· and about him, nor of his actions when equally astounding fall acy sheared someone tickles his toe or touches of its scientific wool. It is in this his upper lip, while the other will t.he Behaviorist differs from his do a round of golf and r eturn to psychological predecessors who the office to tell of his wonderful tried to elevate the beast to the progress in the game. Where lies level of man by attributing intel­ the difference? The answer is evi­ ligence to it. Dr. W atson lowers dent. Is this logic to deny, there­ man to the level of the beast by fore, the existence of a thing that denying intelligence to him. Be­ I cannot be placed in a t est tube, tween the pink-eyed progeny of but whose existence is as patent to the white rat and the pink-bodied [ 91 1 THE LINA C RE QU A RTERLY and rational, free activity."-(l11stinct offspring of the human species Dr. and Intelligence. ) Watson sees no distinction. Both It is clear from the definition that breathe, both cry, both require intelligence must be accorded man nourishment, and so on. In his but cannot be the product of any illogical and unphilosophical "rea­ organized or mechanical opera­ soning" he has failed to see in this tion. It denotes then the presence squirming and ugly little human of a supra-sensuous, supra-organ­ form a potentiality that raises it ic faculty, to which the scholastics completely above its kindred have applied the name "Intellect". species-potentiality for intelli­ A simple process of reasoning gence. from effect back to a similar cause, Just what do we mean by "in- acceptable even to the most un­ telligence" is a likely question of the behaviorists who claim that philosophic. p sychologists of our type use this For a better understanding and and similar words uncritically and proof of our major premise that. unscientifically, ignorant of their man possesses and manifest s in­ meanings. Again we will be con­ t elligence we must appeal both to sidered old-fashioned if we define each one's own internal experi­ our terms -for "definitions are ence,and-what is more in accord not as popular today as they used with W'atsonian logic-to the ob­ to be" claims Dr. Watson. None jective observation of man's be­ the less if old-fashioned is a syno­ havior. nym for logical and orderly pro­ Man forms intellectual ideas, cedure we will risk the epithet. the objects of which are in nowise No better definition of "intelli­ material beings. He may repre­ gence" can be found than in the sent intellectually a mathematical words of our noted et ymologist, point which has no dimensions Dr. W assman: whatever; but he cannot imagine a "According to the etymological meaning mathematical point. To imagine of the term, and the concept hitherto at­ what we call a point on the black­ t ached to it by the scientific psycholo­ board is not to imagine a mathe­ gists of all ages, intelligence-intellect, matical point, but to imagine a understanding-exclusively signifies the power of perceiving the relations of con­ comparatively big lump of chalk cepts to one another, a nd of drawing which has three dimensions and a conclusions therefrom. It essentially in­ definite color, while the intellec­ cludes the power of abstraction, the fac­ tual idea of a mathematical point ulty of collecting from a number of precisely ignores all dimensions single representations that which they all have in common, and thereby, of a nd colors. ;forming general concepts. It includes Abstract number s, for example furthermore a delibe rat e power which the number 3, can be intellectually r ecognizes the relation between mea ns grasped, but cannot be imagined. and end, between a subject and its ac­ Our imagination may r epresent tions, a nd, consequently, endows the in­ t elligent being with self-consciousness the written symbol 3, or the [ 92 ] THE LINACRE QUARTERLY spoken word "three", or three ma­ to two right angles", we mean not terial objects, as three dogs; but this man, nor this triangle, but we cannot imagine the abstract the universal idea of man and tri­ number three as applicable as well angle which can be predicated of to three dogs as to three houses, all men and all triangles.