A Little History Psychology 3306

Dead White guys are not all bad As is the case with all science, the first investigations into learning were done by philosophers As is the case with all science, the first investigations into learning were done by philosophers Aristotle Aristotle Contiguity (both spatial and temporal) Contiguity (both spatial and temporal) Similarity Similarity contrast contrast

Empiricism Then the Romans ruled the known world Then the Romans ruled the known world Then the barbarians came Then the barbarians came Yadda yadda yadda Yadda yadda yadda Then along cam the British Empiricists Then along cam the British Empiricists Believed that knowledge was all based on experience Believed that knowledge was all based on experience Hobbes and Lock are probably the best examples Hobbes and Lock are probably the best examples Locke’s blank paper or ‘tabula rasa’ Locke’s blank paper or ‘tabula rasa’

The Nativists were their rivals Them being the Empiricists Them being the Empiricists Kant and Descartes Kant and Descartes Descartes thought of the mind and the body as separate things Descartes thought of the mind and the body as separate things Kant believed that we were born with natural concepts like space and time Kant believed that we were born with natural concepts like space and time

Rules of Association The empiricists came out with a set of rules about how different things were associated The empiricists came out with a set of rules about how different things were associated Sesnations and ideas Sesnations and ideas Simple sensations -> simple ideas Simple sensations -> simple ideas Simple ideas come to be associated through contiguity into concepts Simple ideas come to be associated through contiguity into concepts

More rules Concepts of two simple ideas are called complex ideas Concepts of two simple ideas are called complex ideas Two complex ideas become duplex ideas Two complex ideas become duplex ideas Whatever…. Whatever…. But seriously, some of these ‘rules’ are not that far off from those that we think of in modern learning theory and indeed concept formation But seriously, some of these ‘rules’ are not that far off from those that we think of in modern learning theory and indeed concept formation

Thomas Brown’s Secondary Principles of Association Length of time Length of time ‘liveliness’ ‘liveliness’ Frequency of pairings Frequency of pairings Recency of pairings Recency of pairings Freedom from other pairings Freedom from other pairings ‘Constitutional’ differences ‘Constitutional’ differences

Brown and his principles Emotional state Emotional state Health Health Prior habits Prior habits Frankly, this is amazing. This list is darned close to the kind of things we talk about today Frankly, this is amazing. This list is darned close to the kind of things we talk about today

Ebbinghaus Well, these were all great ideas, but had not been tested. Well, these were all great ideas, but had not been tested. Cue Hermann Ebbinghaus Cue Hermann Ebbinghaus Strangely, both the behaviourists and the cognitive types claim him as their own Strangely, both the behaviourists and the cognitive types claim him as their own Nonsense syllables Nonsense syllables

Ebbinghaus Studied himself Studied himself Found savings Found savings Repetition was key Repetition was key Classic fogetting curve Classic fogetting curve Contiguity Contiguity Reversal was detrimental, so it was not just contiguity but also contingency Reversal was detrimental, so it was not just contiguity but also contingency

‘Modern’ ideas Eventually the ball was picked up by Skinner, Thorndike, Watson et al Eventually the ball was picked up by Skinner, Thorndike, Watson et al We owe a great deal of our modern ideas about learning to the ideas of the British associationists and later, Ebbinghaus. We owe a great deal of our modern ideas about learning to the ideas of the British associationists and later, Ebbinghaus.