B.F. Skinner, a behaviorist, believed that language acquisition is primarily a result of conditioning and reinforcement, where children learn language through imitation and rewards. In contrast, Noam Chomsky argued that humans are born with an innate ability for language, proposing the existence of a universal grammar that underlies all languages. Chomsky emphasized the cognitive processes involved in language learning, while Skinner focused on observable behaviors and external stimuli. This fundamental difference reflects broader debates between behaviorism and cognitive psychology in understanding human development.
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