Improving the Human Instrument

Abstract

In this review, Homo sapiens is considered as a scientific instrument functioning to arrange contingencies of reinforcement and punishment, and to measure the behavioral effects of such arrangements. The human’s performance as an instrument can be understood, as can other behavior, as a function of both its behavioral history and the impingement of current circumstances. Knowing these variables allows the arrangement of environments that can improve the performance of the human instrument. Of particular importance is the human’s development other types of instruments that complement or supplement their instrumental functions in behavior-analytic research and application. The proficiency with which human instruments use these technology-derived instruments is determined by the user-friendliness of the instrument, the human’s training with such instruments, and the human’s fluency with the principles from which the instrument was developed.