Deborah Skinner Buzan

Deborah Skinner Buzan is an artist and writer. She is most noted for being the daughter of famous American behaviorist B.F. Skinner. She is also married to Barry Buzan a professor at the London School of Economics.
Air Crib
In an effort to help his wife cope with the day-to-day tasks of child rearing, Deborah's father, thought he might be able to improve upon the standard crib. He invented the 'air-crib' to meet this challenge. An 'air-crib'(also known as a 'baby tender' or humorously as an 'heir conditioner') is an easily cleaned, temperature and humidity-controlled box Skinner designed to assist in the raising of babies.
Skinner designed this Air-Crib for his second child, Deborah, because he thought it would help parents who were awakened by their crying babies at night due to cold temperatures, and a need for essential clothing, or sheets. He thought doing so would alternate “troublesome” environmental issues.
Being one of his most controversial inventions, it was popularly mischaracterized as cruel and experimental. These claims continue till today with rumours that Deroah had sued her father, went crazy or had killed herself. The crib was designed to make the early childcare simpler (by greatly reducing laundry, diaper rash, cradle cap, etc.), while encouraging the baby to be more confident, mobile, comfortable, healthy and therefore less prone to cry. (Babies sleep and will sometimes play in air cribs but it's misleading to say they are 'raised' in them. Apart from newborns, most of a baby's waking hours will be spent out of the box.)
A 2004 book by Lauren Slater caused much controversy by reawakening the common rumours that, her father, B.F. Skinner had used her in some of his experiments and that she had subsequently committed suicide. Slater allowed the reader to believe that Deborah had disappeared, thus doing little to quash the rumours. Deborah Skinner then in turn wrote a vehement riposte in The Guardian.
Personal life
She lives in London with her husband Barry Buzan . The couple do not have any children.

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu