p sychology 3351: l earning d. rush mcqueen, ph.d. [email protected] 334.399.1028 day 4
TRANSCRIPT
QUIZ1. E.L. Thorndike’s theories best fall under which school of thought?
a) Voluntarismb) Structuralismc) Functionalismd) None of these
2. Thorndike first studied the behavior of:a) Frogsb) Dogsc) Chickensd) None of these
3. Connectionism refers to:a) Interpersonal relationships between family members.b) Bonds between atoms.c) Neural connections between stimulus and response.d) None of these.
4. To Thorndike, learning:a) Occurs by trial-and-error.b) Is incremental rather than insightful.c) Is not mediated by ideas.d) Is all of the above.
5. Thorndike’s Revised Law of Effect states that:a) Reinforcement increases the strength of a connection.b) Punishment decreases the strength of a connection.c) Neither A nor B.d) Both A and B.
QUIZ (PART II)6. Thorndike’s concept of Belongingness suggests that:
a) A response that satisfies the need state of an organism is easier to reinforce.b) The reinforcement of a response tends to reinforce similar or related responses.c) Both A and B.d) None of these.
7. Thorndike’s concept of Spread of Effect suggests that:a) A response that satisfies the need state of an organism is easier to reinforce.b) The reinforcement of a response tends to reinforce similar or related responses.c) Both A and B.d) None of these.
7. Your text asserts that Thorndike’s Associative Shifting is often used:a) In training animals.b) In advertising.c) Both of these.d) Neither of these.
8. According to your text, those critical of Thorndike were most often so because:a) He was a student of William James.b) His theories were deterministic, focused on automatic reactions rather than based on
values.c) They felt he was cruel to the animals he used as research subjects.d) None of these.
9. Thorndike thought that good teaching was:a) Lecture-based.b) Based on clearly-established objectives.c) Within the capabilities of the learner.d) Both B and C.
EDWARD LEE THORNDIKE (1874 – 1949)
Born Williamsburg, Massachusetts
Second son of a Methodist minister
Undergraduate at Wesleyan University
Read James’ Principles of Psychology
Later attended Harvard and worked with James and became close
Could not get lab space at Harvard so raised chicks in the James’ basement
E.L. THORNDIKEMAJOR THEORETICAL CONCEPTS
Connectionism: the idea that there is a neural connection between stimulus (S) and response (R)
Selecting and Connecting: trial-and-error learning; what works is repeated
Incremental learning: small steps rather than moments of insight
Ideas as unnecessary: parsimony – reasoning is not necessary
All mammals learn in the same manner
THORNDIKE’S PUZZLE BOXESVideo Clip
THORNDIKE AFTER 1930
Revised Law of Effect: reinforcement increases the strength of a connection, whereas punishment does nothing to the strength of a connection
Belongingness: learning occurs more readily if there is a natural relationship between the need state of the organism and the effect caused by the response
Spread of Effect: reinforcement “spreads” to responses surrounding the reinforced one
THORNDIKE ON EDUCATION
1. Consider the situation the student faces.
2. Consider the response you wish to connect with it.
3. Form the bond; do not expect it to come by a miracle.
4. Other things being equal, form no bond that will have to be broken.
5. Other things being equal, do not two or three bonds when one will do.
6. Other things being equal, form bonds in the way that they are required later to act.
7. Favor, therefore, the situations which life itself will offer, and the responses which life itself will demand.