What Is Thorndike's Law of Effect and Explain Its Significance

question 7

Essay

What is Thorndike's Law of Effect and explain its significance with reference to the reinforcement theory.
E. L. Thorndike's Law of Effect states that a response followed by a reward is more likely to recur in the future. The implication for compensation management is that high employee performance followed by a monetary reward will make future high performance more likely. By the same token, high performance not followed by a reward will make it less likely in the future. The theory emphasizes the importance of a person's actual experience of a reward.

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Definitions:

Fixed Costs

Expenses that do not change with the amount of goods or services produced by a business.

Raw Materials

The basic materials from which products are made, often extracted from natural resources and used in manufacturing processes.

Breaking Even

The point at which total revenues equal total costs, resulting in no net loss or gain.

Net Present Value

A financial metric that calculates the present value of all future cash flows associated with a project, minus the initial investment cost.