Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Molar Reductionism

  • Chapter
Knowing, Thinking, and Believing

Abstract

In the past few years, I have been concerned about the state of psychology as a science. I have been expressing this concern in a series of papers concerned with such things as the psychobiology of language development (Petrinovich, 1972), the evolution of language (Petrinovich, 1976), the methodological traditions and shortcomings of psychology as a science (Petrinovich, l973a), and these principles as examined in the context of a research problem (Petrinovich, 1973b). This series of papers has led me to a series of questions. Have we progressed toward an understanding of the behavior of organisms? Do we know much more now than we did 50 years ago about what organisms are likely to do in the environmental contexts that are representative of their life space? Are we approaching a better understanding of why organisms adapt to certain situations in the way they do, and why they do not adapt in an adequate manner to other situations? I have come to the awareness that we have not made a great deal of progress toward finding the answers to these questions, and that it is time for us to confront these issues full face and to stop merely casting sideways glances at them. After all, they do comprise the major tasks for psychology as a science.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Allport, GW1947Scientific models and human moralsPsychological Review, 54, 182 - 192.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ayala, F11972The autonomy of biology as a natural scienceIn: Biology, History, and Natural PhilosophyADBreck and WYourgrau (Eds.)Plenum Press, New York, pp1 - 16.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bergmann, G., and Spence, KW1941Operationism and theory in psychologyPsychological Review, 48, 1 - 14.

    Google Scholar 

  • Best, 1. B1972The evolution and organization of sentient biological behavior systemsIn: Biology, History, and Natural Philosophy. ADBreck and WYourgrau (Eds.)Plenum Press, New York, pp37-78.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brunswik, E1952The conceptual framework of psychologyIn: International Encyclopedia of Unified Science, Voll, No10University of Chicago Press, Chicago.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brunswik, E1955Representative design and probabilistic theory in a functional psychologyPsychological Review, 62, 193 - 217.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brunswik, E1956Perception and the Representative Design of Psychological Experiments ( 2nd ed)University of California Press, Berkeley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Esper, EA1964A History of PsychologySaunders, Philadelphia.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ghiselin, MT1971The individual in the Darwinian revolutionNew Literary History, 3, 113 - 134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hammond, KR., Stewart, TR., Brehmer, B., and Steinmann, D01975Social judgment theoryIn: Human Judgment and Decision Processes: Formal and iHathematical ApproachesMFKaplan and SSchwartz (Eds.)Academic Press, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hebb, D01949The Organization of BehaviorWiley, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hilgard, ER1948Theories of LearningAppleton-Century-Crofts, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hilgard, ER1956Theories of Learning ( 2nd ed)Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hull, CL1943aPrinciples of Behavior. Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hull, CL1943bThe problem of intervening variables in molar behavior theoryPsychological Review, 50, 273 - 291.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jessor, R1958The problem of reductionism in psychologyPsychological Review, 65, 170 - 178.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaplan, A1964The Conduct of InquiryChandler, San Francisco.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kendler, HH., and Spence, JT1971Tenets of neobehaviorismIn: Essays in Neobehaviorism.

    Google Scholar 

  • HHKendler and JTSpence (Eds.)Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York, pp11-40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kerlinger, FN1973Foundations of Behavioral Research ( 2nd ed)Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krech, D1950aDynamic systems, psychological fields, and hypothetical constructsPsychological Review, 57, 283 - 290.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Krech, D1950bDynamic systems as open neurological systemsPsychological Review, 57, 345 - 361.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Krech, D1955Discussion: Theory and reductionismPsychological Review, 62, 226 - 228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krech, D1974David KrechIn: History of Psychology in Autobiography, Vol6PrenticeHall, New York, pp219 - 250.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuhn, TS1970The Structure of Scientific Revolutions ( 2nd ed)University of Chicago Press, Chicago.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lashley, KS1949In search of the engramIn: Symposium of the Society for Experimental Biology, No4Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp454 - 482.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maslow, AH1966The Psychology of ScienceHarper and Row, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayr, E1965Cause and effect in biologyIn: Cause and EffectDLerner (Ed.)Free Press, New York, pp33 - 50.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nagel, E1961The Structure of ScienceHarcourt, Brace and World, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nagel, E1965Types of causal explanation in scienceIn: Cause and EffectDLeamer (Ed.)Free Press, New York, pp11 - 26.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neisser, U1967Cognitive PsychologyAppleton-Century-Crofts, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Petrinovich, L1972Psychobiological mechanisms in language developmentIn: Advances in Psychobiology, Vol1GNewton and AHRiesen (Eds.)Wiley, New York, pp259 - 285.

    Google Scholar 

  • Petrinovich, L1973aDarwin and the representative expression of realityIn: Darwin and Facial ExpressionPEkman (Ed.)Academic Press, New York, pp223 - 256.

    Google Scholar 

  • Petrinovich, L1973bA species-meaningful analysis of habituationIn: Habituation: Behavioral Studies, VolIHVSPeeke and MJHerz (Eds.)Academic Press, New York, pp141 - 162.

    Google Scholar 

  • Petrinovich, L1976Communication and Language: An evolutionary viewIn: Biology and LanguageSKGhosh (Ed.)University Park Press, Baltimore.

    Google Scholar 

  • Polanyi, M1958Personal KnowledgeUniversity of Chicago Press, Chicago.

    Google Scholar 

  • Postman, L1955The probability approach and nomothetic theoryPsychological Review, 62, 218 - 225.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Scriven, M1959Explanation and prediction in evolutionary theoryScience, 130,477-482.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skinner, BF1938The Behavior of OrganismsAppleton, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevens, SS1939Psychology and the science of sciencePsychological Bulletin, 36, 221 - 263.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tolman, EC1932Purposive Behavior in Animals and MenAppleton, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tolman, EC1936Operational behaviorism and current trends in psychologyIn: Proceedings of the 25th Anniversary Celebration of the Inauguration of Graduate StudiesUniversity of Southern California Press, Los Angeles, pp89 - 103.

    Google Scholar 

  • Underwood, BJ. 1957Psychological Researc/1. Appleton-Century-CroftsNew York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Underwood, BJ1966Experime11tal Psychology ( 2nd ed)Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Watson, J. B1924Psychology from the Standpoint of a Behaviorist (2nd ed.)Lippincott, Philadelphia.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, California, USA

    Lewis Petrinovich

Authors
  1. Lewis Petrinovich
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, California, USA

    Lewis Petrinovich

  2. Department of Psychobiology, School of Biological Sciences, University of California, Irvine, California, USA

    James L. McGaugh

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 1976 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Petrinovich, L. (1976). Molar Reductionism. In: Petrinovich, L., McGaugh, J.L. (eds) Knowing, Thinking, and Believing. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-1653-5_2

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-1653-5_2

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4757-1655-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4757-1653-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation