Thorndike S-R Theory

Thorndike Stimulus Response Theory

STIMULUS- any agent, event, or situation—internal or
external—that elicits a response from an organism.
For example is the smell of food.
RESPONSE- response in psychology refers to a behavior
that was the result of a stimulus. For example is the
salivation or hunger in response to the smell of food.
Thorndike S-R Theory
Edward Lee Thorndike, is an American pioneer in
comparative psychology, was born in Lowell,
Massachusetts in 1874 to the family of a Methodist
minister. He became interested in the field of psychology
after reading William James' "Principles of Psychology"
and after graduating from Wesleyan University.
• Born August 31,
1874 in
Williamsburg,Mas
sachusetts.
• Died on August 9,
1949.
Edward Thorndike's work on animal behavior and the learning process led to the theory of
connectionism and helped lay the foundation for modern educational psychology. he is one of the
first pioneers of active learning, a theory that proposes letting children learn themselves, rather
than receiving instruction from teachers.

The learning theory of Thorndike represents the original S- R framework of behavioral

psychology: Learning is the result of associations forming between stimuli and responses. Such
associations or "habits" become strengthened or weakened by the nature and frequency of the S-
R pairings. The paradigm for S-R theory was trial and error learning in which certain responses
come to dominate others due to rewards. The hallmark of connectionism (like all behavioral
theory) was that learning could be adequately explained without referring to any unobservable
internal states. THORNDIKE’S CONNECTIONISM THEORY
 LAW OF EFFECT

States that if an act is followed by a

satisfying change in the environment, the
likelihood that the act will be repeated in
similar situations increases.
 LAW OF READINESS

Individuals learn best when they are

physically, mentally and emotionally ready
to learn, and they do not learn well if they
see no reason for learning
 LAW OF EXERCISE
States that any connection is strengthened in proportion to
the number of times it occurs and in proportion to the
average vigor and duration of the connection.

Things most often repeated are best remembered •

Students do not lean complex task in a single session
 B.F Skinner Operant conditioning
theory
Burrhus Frederic (B. F.) Skinner (March
20, 1904 – August 18, 1990)
American psychologist, behaviorist,
inventor, author and social philosopher.
He was the Edgar Pierce Professor of
Psychology at Harvard University from
1958 1974.
The operant conditioning theory was based on skinner's experiment with a hungry rat that was
placed in a box. Upon its accidental pressing of a lever in the box, it was rewarded with a food
pellet which served as reinforcement to the reinforcing behavior. Reinforced thus, the rat kept
on pressing that bar, this time no longer accidentally but intentionally. Skinner has shown that
basic to operant conditioning is the use of reinforcement.

REINFORCEMENT is defined as any behavioral consequence that strengthen (increase the

frequency of) behavior. The reinforcement increases the likelihood of the recurrence of a
particular type of response

Responses my be reinforced by the presentation positive or negative of a particular

consequences.
POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE REINFORCERS
POSITIVE REINFORCERS - are events that are presented after a response
has been performed and that increase the behavior or activity they follows.

NEGATVE REINFORCERS - are escapes from unpleasant situations or

ways of preventing something unpleasant from occurring.

PRIMARY REINFORCERS - are those that satisfy basic

human needs

SECONDARY REINFORCERS - are those that acquire

reinforcing power because they have been associated with
primary reinforcers.