ORDINARY LANGUAGE - THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF RYLE,GILBERT AND AUSTIN,JOHNTO THE EXPERIMENTAL-ANALYSIS OF BEHAVIOR

The aim of this paper is to show how ''conceptual analysis'' - the phi losophical method used by Gilbert Ryle and John Austin - can contribut e to behavior analysis in general and in particular to the elucidation and development of views put forward by B. F. Skinner. One of the key requirements is a sensitivity to the precise circumstances in which p articular combinations of words are uttered. Without such sensitivity, it is difficult to make informed decisions as to when ways of talking should be changed and when they should be left as they are.