As a Young Doctoral Student,Edward Thorndike Set the Stage for the Emergence

question 31

Essay

As a young doctoral student,Edward Thorndike set the stage for the emergence of operant conditioning. Describe the research that Thorndike conducted with cats in a puzzle box. How did the cats behave at first when they wanted to reach a scrap of fish that was just outside the box? What happened over time? What conclusions did Thorndike reach? Although B.F.Skinner expanded on Thorndike's principles,Skinner avoided some terminology because it implied assumptions that Skinner felt were inappropriate.What changes did Skinner make?

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