Abstract
Background. The development of behaviorism, as one of the key paradigms in psychology,was followed by the influence of its sectoral development, including legal and psychological issues. Accordingly, the issue of establishing the limits of the methodological application of behaviorism in anthropological and clinical paradigms in legal psychology becomes scientifically relevant.
Objective. Determination of the main theoretical foundations on the influence of classical and social behaviorism on the formation and development of anthropological and clinical paradigms in legal psychology within the context of the ideas of American and Canadian Ukrainian psychologists: John Watson and Albert Bandura.
Methods. The structural-functional method was used to single out the elements of behaviorist theoretical framework within the context of the historical development of psychology. The comparative method was used to differentiate the ideas of classical and social behaviorism. Bibliographic work of representatives of the classical (J. Watson) and social behaviorism (A. Bandura) as well as modern literature devoted to the analysis of the ideas of representatives of behavioral psychology were analyzed.
Results. The article is devoted to the structuring of specific features inherent in the paradigmatic character of legal psychology that gave the chance to define the influence of behaviorism on the development of anthropological and clinical paradigms within it. The historical process of evolution of behavioral psychology includes various stages of its formation. The article analyzes the main historical behaviorist concepts that are integrated into the field of legal psychology. In this context, the classical theory of behaviorism by J. Watson is compared to the social behaviorism of A. Bandura, as well as the possibilities of legal and psychological implementation of methodological elements of both approaches.
Conclusions. The role of behaviorism in the process of scientific revolution in psychology and the determination of the key positions of clinicism and anthropologism in legal psychology, is determined. The application of the behaviorist model of human behavior «stimulus – reaction» in legal psychology is considered. Social behaviorism postulated consideration of behavior as copying of visually learned examples by human-being. According to behaviorist theory, the article defines the phenomenon of human legal behavior and its features like the element «of social-legal consciousness».
Key words: legal psychology, clinical paradigm, anthropological paradigm, behaviorism, social behaviorism.
Received: August 1, 2025
Accepted: October 21, 2025
Published: October 30, 2025
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