Eventos privados em artigos de revistas científicas: o que está sendo discutido?

Abstract

The present study has the aim to identify what has been discussed about private events in articles published in scientific journals. The importance of studying private events is a matter that exists since the beginning of Psychology, as Figueiredo (1999) and Aranha and Martins (1992) state the born of Psychology as a scientific discipline happened in the end of the XIX century, and they consider that this born is consequence of the social and cultural tenets which emphasis was on the individual. Skinner (1974/1976) defends that a science of behavior must study private events and state that this is the core of radical behaviorism. In order to answer to the aim of the present study, a search system was consulted, PsycInfo, which provided abstracts that were selected and summed 107 articles that were analyzed. The following topics were registered: title; author's name; affiliation; publication year; name of the journal; main aspect of the article; type of the article and bibliographic references. These data were analyzed and resulted in the following information: the 90's were the decade that had the higher average of published articles (5,3); Moore has published 10% of the articles about private events; ~he 13ehav~orAr~aíyst published 15% of the articles; 92% of the articles posses some Skinner's work in their references; About Behaviorism is the most referenced Skinner's work (37°/0); 90% are theoretical-conceptual analysis, 8% descriptive-experimental works and 2% applied works; 46% of the articles belong to group 1 which characterize the treatment given to the private events by radical behaviorism; 30°/Q are group 2 and they compare the treatment given to the private events by radical behaviorism with another approach and 24% of the articles belong to group 3 and they are works about private events discrimination. Inside group 1, 13% are works about private events and behavior causality; 10% private events are a social product; 19% private events does not have special nature; 16% analysis of a concept or text about private events; 6% strategies to study private events; 19% relation between the concept of private events and practice; 6% criticize the radical behaviorist purpose to how to deal with private events. Inside group 2, 21% compare radical behaviorism and cognitivism; 7% compare radical behaviorism and methodological behaviorism; 21% compare radical behaviorism and mentalism; 7% compare radical behaviorism and operacionism; 20% compare Skinner and another author; 20% compare radical behaviorism and humanist approaches. Inside group 3, 20% of the articles compare public and private events discrimination; 20% are works that study private events and stimulus equivalence; 20% are works about covert behavior modification; 18% are works that evaluate if and how much subject can discriminate private events; 6% articles that intend to teach subject to discriminate private events; 16% are studies that establish a relationship between private events and rule governed behavior