RADICAL BEHAVIORIST INTERPRETATION - GENERATING AND EVALUATING AN ACCOUNT OF CONSUMER-BEHAVIOR

This article considers an approach to the radical behaviorist interpre tation of complex human social behavior. The chosen context is consume r psychology, a field currently dominated by cognitive models of purch ase and consumption. The nature of operant interpretation is considere d, and several levels of operant analysis of complex economic behavior in affluent marketing-oriented economies are developed. Empirical evi dence for the interpretation is considered, and a case is made for the qualified use of the hypothetico-deductive method in the appraisal of operant interpretations of complex behaviors.