Transition inebriation

The foundation of behaviouristic theory in psychology states that all behaviour is essentially a sequence of an environmental stimulus that presents itself to an organism and triggers a response. Here, environmental doesn’t have anything to do with climate activism. It has to do with any and all things outside the responsive organism.

Yet here is one other, final part to that sequence: reinforcement. Reinforcement, generally speaking, is the consequence of a person’s response to a stimulus. Reinforcement can be either positive or negative, in both cases strengthening the behaviour. In the context of human interaction, one either encourages certain behaviour through reward (positive) or through the threat of sanctions (negative).

Behaviouristic theory is controversial, to say the least. But that doesn’t make it all wrong and the sequence of stimulus-response-reinforcement is one great gift to the world made by behaviourist supreme B.F. Skinner. Skinner and his work must have been a massive source of inspiration for the climate crusader crowd. If only they also had the powers of reason to go with it.

About a month ago, I wrote a Substack where I cited a paper by Bruegel on the necessary investments in the EU’s transition and promised to take a closer look at that paper. Once again, I lied. Kind of. We are going to take a closer look, but specifically in the part that talks about how behaviour changes could contribute to reducing the final tab for the transition. In France, they call it energy sobriety, unironically. Welcome to the Prohibition, 21st century-style.