Rosalie Rayner is largely remembered for assisting John B. Watson – the ‘father’ of behaviourism – in his infamous ‘Little Albert’ experiments, a milestone in the dominance of behaviourism in psychology for a generation. Notoriety was amplified by the couple’s scandalous affair & Watson’s forced departure from academia; Rayner also left without graduating (this was 1919 & Watson was married). They later married & had two children, raised according to behaviourist principles, a wholly unsuccessfully real-life experiment by any standards (that’s another story). They co-authored the best-selling child rearing guide of the era, Psychological Care of Infant and Child, containing gems of wisdom such as this: ‘When you are tempted to pet your child remember that mother love is a dangerous instrument’.
further reading
Watson, J. B. (1913). Psychology as the behaviorist views it. Psychological review, 20(2), 158-277.
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