L4: Early Learning Theory: Pavlov, Hull and Tolman Flashcards
Why did Pavlov shift from studying digestion to association?
The discovery of a hormone (secretin) that partly controlled digestion undermined his theory of neural control.
List four of Pavlov’s contributions to psychology
- the vocabulary of conditioning: CS, CR, etc.
- the method by which associative learning is studied
- conditioned reflex, including the principle of stimulus substitution (S-S learning)
- discoveries such as extinction, spontaneous recovery
List three of Pavlov’s limitations
- monolithic theory: he thought all learning was due to conditioned reflexes
- his understanding of neurophysiology was outdated
- his theories about individual differences were highly speculative
How was American research similar to, and different from, Pavlov’s?
- Pavlov provided the theoretical framework for researching associative learning
- Rather than Pavlov’s paradigm (conditioned salivation), American researchers used rats in mazes and Skinner boxes.
- the US paradigms were instrumental, not Pavlovian procedures
How did Hull seek to make psychology more scientific?
He wanted to formulate a general theory of psychology with quantitative laws, analagous to Newton’s Laws of Motion in physics.
How is the Hull-Spence S-R-Rft theory different from Watson’s S-R theory?
While accepting reinforcement stamps in the S-R connection, Hull conceptualised reinforcement as a reduction in a drive.
In what major way did Tolman’s ideas differ from Watson’s and Hull’s?
Tolman included references to mental constructs such as purpose, expectancy and cognitive maps
How did Tolman’s view of reinforcement differ from Watson or Hull’s?
Watson and Hull believed reinforcement was required for learning to occur. Tolman believed that learning could occur in the absence of reinforcement, but reinforcement provided an incentive to perform.
How did Tolman show learning could occur in the absence of reinforcement?
He showed that rats who had spent time in a maze without reinforcement were capable of navigating the maze more quickly when reinforcement was provided, showing they had learnt even when reinforcement was not present.
How did Tolman show a cognitive map model better explained his results than a S-R model?
He showed that once rats had explored a maze, they could navigate around blocks using the quickest path, showing awareness of layout rather than simply reproducing reinforced responses.
When did Tolman’s ideas become generally accepted?
The 1970’s.
