Journal article
Decoupling Design from Darwinian and Skinnerian Selection
Perspectives on behavior science, Vol.49(1), pp.111-128
03/2026
DOI: 10.1007/s40614-025-00476-y
PMCID: PMC13013717
PMID: 41890685
Appears in UI Libraries Support Open Access
Abstract
Darwin explained how seemingly purposeful and foresightful design could be decoupled from natural selection. Skinner followed suit for selection by reinforcement. Together with cultural selection, these three selectionist ideas represent today’s prime pillars of evolutionary thinking in biological and behavioral science. Nevertheless, controversy continues because mentalism still creeps into the efforts of psychologists, biologists, and philosophers to meet the interpretive challenges posed by creative behaviors and innovations. A prime problem may be the unfortunate connotations accompanying the term “selection.”
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Decoupling Design from Darwinian and Skinnerian Selection
- Creators
- Edward A. Wasserman
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Perspectives on behavior science, Vol.49(1), pp.111-128
- DOI
- 10.1007/s40614-025-00476-y
- PMID
- 41890685
- PMCID
- PMC13013717
- NLM abbreviation
- Perspect Behav Sci
- ISSN
- 2520-8969
- eISSN
- 2520-8977
- Publisher
- Springer Nature
- Language
- English
- Electronic publication date
- 09/15/2025
- Date published
- 03/2026
- Academic Unit
- Psychological and Brain Sciences; Iowa Neuroscience Institute
- Record Identifier
- 9984963622502771
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