Thorndike (1898) studied learning in animals (usually cats).

He devised a classic
experiment in which he used a puzzle box (see fig. 1) to empirically test the laws
of learning.

Fig 1: Simplified graph of the result of the puzzle box experiment.

He placed a cat in the puzzle box, which was encourage to escape to reach a scrap
of fish placed outside. Thorndike would put a cat into the box and time how long
it took to escape. The cats experimented with different ways to escape the puzzle
box and reach the fish.
Eventually they would stumble upon the lever which opened the cage. When it
had escaped it was put in again, and once more the time it took to escape was
noted. In successive trials the cats would learn that pressing the lever would have
favorable consequences and they would adopt this behavior, becoming
increasingly quick at pressing the lever.
Edward Thorndike put forward a Law of effect which stated that any behavior
that is followed by pleasant consequences is likely to be repeated, and any
behavior followed by unpleasant consequences is likely to be stopped.
 Thorndike's law of effect states that behaviors are
modified by their positive or negative
consequences.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE[ EDIT ]
Relate Thorndike's law of effect to the principles of operant conditioning

KEY POINTS[ EDIT ]

The law of effect states that responses that produce a satisfying effect in a
particular situation become more likely to occur again, while responses that
produce a discomforting effect are less likely to be repeated.
Edward L. Thorndike first studied the law of effect by placing hungry cats
inside puzzle boxes and observing their actions. He quickly realized that
cats could learn the efficacy of certain behaviors and would repeat those
behaviors that allowed them to escape faster.
The law of effect is at work in every human behavior as well. From a young
age, we learn which actions are beneficial and which are detrimental
through a similar trial and error process.
While the law of effect explains behavior from an external, observable point
of view, it does not account for internal, unobservable processes that also
affect the behavior patterns of human beings.

TERMS[ EDIT ]
Law of Effect
A law developed by Edward L. Thorndike that states, "responses that
produce a satisfying effect in a particular situation become more likely to
occur again in that situation, and responses that produce a discomforting
effect become less likely to occur again in that situation."
trial and error
The process of finding a solution to a problem by trying many possible
solutions and learning from mistakes until a way is found.
behavior modification
The act of altering actions and reactions to stimuli through positive and
negative reinforcement or punishment.
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FULL TEXT[ EDIT ]
Operant conditioning is a theory of learning that focuses on changes in

an individual's observable behaviors. In operant conditioning, new or

continued behaviors are impacted by new or continued

consequences. Research regarding this principle of learning first

began in the late 19th century with Edward L. Thorndike, who

established the law of effect.

Thorndike's Experiments
Thorndike's most famous work involved cats trying to navigate

through various puzzle boxes. In this experiment, he placed hungry

cats into homemade boxes and recorded the time it took for them to

perform the necessary actions to escape and receive their food

reward. Thorndike discovered that with successive trials, cats would

learn from previous behavior, limit ineffective actions, and escape

from the box more quickly. He observed that the cats seemed to

learn, from an intricate trial and error process, which actions should

be continued and which actions should be abandoned; a well-

practiced cat could quickly remember and reuse actions that were

successful in escaping to the food reward.

Thorndike's puzzle box

This image shows an example of Thorndike's puzzle box alongside a graph

demonstrating the learning of a cat within the box. As the number of trials increased,
the cats were able to escape more quickly by learning.

The Law of Effect

Thorndike realized not only that stimuli and responses were

associated, but also that behavior could be modified by consequences.

He used these findings to publish his now famous "law of effect"

theory. According to the law of effect, behaviors that are followed by

consequences that are satisfying to the organism are more likely to be

repeated, and behaviors that are followed by unpleasant

consequences are less likely to be repeated. Essentially, if an

organism does something that brings about a desired result, the

organism is more likely to do it again. If an organism does something

that does not bring about a desired result, the organism is less likely

to do it again.

Law of effect

Initially, cats displayed a variety of behaviors inside the box. Over successive trials,
actions that were helpful in escaping the box and receiving the food reward were
replicated and repeated at a higher rate.

Thorndike's law of effect now informs much of what we know about

operant conditioning and behaviorism. According to this law,

behaviors are modified by their consequences, and this basic

stimulus-response relationship can be learned by the operant person

or animal. Once the association between behavior and consequences

is established, the response is reinforced, and the association holds

the sole responsibility for the occurrence of that behavior. Thorndike

posited that learning was merely a change in behavior as a result of a

consequence, and that if an action brought a reward, it was stamped

into the mind and available for recall later.

From a young age, we learn which actions are beneficial and which

are detrimental through a trial and error process. For example, a

young child is playing with her friend on the playground and playfully

pushes her friend off the swingset. Her friend falls to the ground and

begins to cry, and then refuses to play with her for the rest of the day.

The child's actions (pushing her friend) are informed by their

consequences (her friend refusing to play with her), and she learns

not to repeat that action if she wants to continue playing with her

friend.

The law of effect has been expanded to various forms of behavior

modification. Because the law of effect is a key component of

behaviorism, it does not include any reference to unobservable or

internal states; instead, it relies solely on what can be observed in

human behavior. While this theory does not account for the entirety

of human behavior, it has been applied to nearly every sector of

human life, but particularly in education and psychology.

Thorndike (1874-1949)
Edward Thorndike came up with the concept of intrumental conditioning and, like
Pavlov, reached his main conclusions using data gained through animal-based
experimentation.

Such experiments included placing hungry cats in an enclosed container, which Skinner
referred to as a puzzle box, from which they had to escape in order to reach food. The
first time a cat was placed in this situation it escaped only after several failed attempts
and a single lucky successful guess (such as pushing the right button). However, the
time it took to escape decreased each time a cat was returned to the box.

This meant, first of all, that the cats remembered which behavior was necessary to
escape and get the reward of food. If they had not, it would take approximately the same
time for them to refigure it out and there would not be the trend of a continually faster
escape. Secondly, they were clearly able to recognize their current situation (being
placed in the puzzle box) was identical to the last time they were placed inside of the
puzzle box, and therefore that the same successful behavior used before would achieve
the same end result the next time around: freedom and a feast.

Source

Using his data Thorndike developed two main laws concerning conditioning. The first
was the law of exercise, stating simply that the repetition of a response strengthens it.
Each time a cat was placed in the puzzle box it exhibited a stronger inclination to perform
the behaviors required, exiting the box with increased proficiency and in a shorter time
span.

The second law, the law of effect, established that behaviors were either strengthened
or weakened, depending on whether they were rewarded or punished. Each time the
successful behavior was repeated, it was done so more quickly because the cat no
longer wasted time performing other behaviors which had proven unsuccessful and kept
the animal imprisoned.

Picking up where we left off last time: The late 19th and early 20th century
were a heady time (no pun intended) for cognitive science. In an effort to pull
psychology out of the realm of hucksterism, one branch of psychology elected
to restrict itself entirely to outwardly observable behavior, and factors that
could be shown to influence it (hence the name for this field of
endeavor: Behaviorism). Edward Thorndike (1874-1949) and John Broadus
Watson (1878-1958) are the "fathers" of American behaviorism.

Source:

Thorndike studied the way animals escaped from cages. Over many trials, the
animals in his experiments needed less and less time to escape. Thorndike
postulated that getting out of the cage was attractive to the animal, so the
experience of getting free reinforced whatever behavior had occurred right
before the escape. He called this the law of effect, writing, "Of several
[possible] responses...those which are...closely followed by satisfaction to the
animal will...be more likely to recur. Those which are...followed by discomfort
to the animal will...be less likely to occur." (Thorndike, E. Animal Intelligence.
1911. Available on line from: Classics in the History of
Psychology: http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Thorndike/Animal/chap2.htm .)
Thorndike never said anything about the animal "thinking" its way to a
solution, since "thinking" was not something he could observe or measure.
(Thorndike also was interested in seeing if animals escaped more quickly if
they had a chance to observe another animal first. For this he studied cats; he
found that letting one cat watch another cat escape was no help, when the
second cat's time came to get out of the cage. This will be important later in
our discussion.)