[from Gary Cziko 971121.1805]
I was wondering if any of the CSGnetters out there who are familiar with
Chomsky's writings (I'm thinking of people like Avery, Martin and Bruce
Nevin but hope there are others) can tell me if he has ever written about
language behavior as purposeful or goal-oriented.
I know that in his review of Skinner's _Verbal Behavior_ he dismissed
Skinner's notion of reinforcement as having any explanatory value with
respect to a person's "wants" and "likes" (see below), but I'd like to
know if he ever specifically discussed language behavior in any way that
would be the least bit consistent with a PCT perspective on behavior.
Thanks.--Gary
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From this sample, it can be seen that the notion of reinforcement has
totally lost whatever objective meaning it may ever have had. Running
through these examples, we see that a person can be reinforced though he
emits no response at all, and that the reinforcing stimulus need not
impinge on the reinforced person or need not even exist (it is sufficient
that it be imagined or hoped for). When we read that a person plays what
music he likes, says what he likes, thinks what he likes, reads what books
he likes, etc. BECAUSE he finds it reinforcing to do so, or that we write
books or inform others of facts BECAUSE we are reinforced by what we hope
will be the ultimate behavior of reader or listener, we can only conclude
that the term reinforcement has a purely ritual function. The phrase "X is
reinforced by Y" . . . is being used as a cover term for "X wants Y," "X
likes Y," "X wishes that Y were the case," etc. Invoking the term
reinforcement has no explanatory force, and any idea that this paraphrase
introduces any new clarity or objectivity into the description of wishing,
liking, etc., is a serious delusion. (Chomsky, 1964, p. 554)