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Psychology Terms – Air Crib
An air crib is a sealed, electrically heated, soundproof enclosure approximately the dimensions of a standard crib, designed to accommodate an unclothed infant. One wall features a safety glass panel that can be opened akin to a window, with a curtain available to obscure light within the compartment. The floor is composed of tightly stretched, movable canvas, functioning similarly to a roller towel, which is wound on a spool located externally on one side and feeds into a wire hamper on the opposite side. Toys, such as musical boxes, may be positioned in the compartment, which safeguards the infant from airborne pathogens, dust, and allergens. A purported benefit of the air crib is that the baby's cries are nearly imperceptible from the exterior, and due to the absence of dangers within, reinforcement of crying is improbable. The apparatus was devised by American psychologist B(urrhus) F(rederic) Skinner (1904–90), who used it to rear his second daughter, Deborah, and documented the outcomes in a piece published in the Ladies Home Journal in October 1945. The technology generated much controversy; however, a 1995 research including 50 former air-crib infants and their parents showed entirely favorable outcomes. Also referred to as a Skinner crib.
An air crib is a sealed, electrically heated, soundproof enclosure approximately the dimensions of a standard crib, designed to accommodate an unclothed infant. One wall features a safety glass panel that can be opened akin to a window, with a curtain available to obscure light within the compartment. The floor is composed of tightly stretched, movable canvas, functioning similarly to a roller towel, which is wound on a spool located externally on one side and feeds into a wire hamper on the opposite side. Toys, such as musical boxes, may be positioned in the compartment, which safeguards the infant from airborne pathogens, dust, and allergens. A purported benefit of the air crib is that the baby's cries are nearly imperceptible from the exterior, and due to the absence of dangers within, reinforcement of crying is improbable. The apparatus was devised by American psychologist B(urrhus) F(rederic) Skinner (1904–90), who used it to rear his second daughter, Deborah, and documented the outcomes in a piece published in the Ladies Home Journal in October 1945. The technology generated much controversy; however, a 1995 research including 50 former air-crib infants and their parents showed entirely favorable outcomes. Also referred to as a Skinner crib.
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