Robert Rescorla - Period 1 Gray

What was the succterm-8ess outcome of the model?

-Generated clear and ordinal predictions of stimuli -Cast such terms as "prediction" and "surprise" (the model has intuitive appeal) -Generated new findings and alternative theories

What awards did Robert Rescorla receive for his scientific achievements?

APA Award of the Distinguished Scientific Contributions (1986)

Who was Robert Rescorla?

American Psychologist → known for work with classical conditioning & cognition - studied at University of Pennsylvania - taught at Yale University

What does Rescorla's Contingency theory propose?

Contingency theory proposes that for learning to take place, a stimulus must provide the subject information about the likelihood that certain events will occur.

What did Rescorla and Wagner create?

Created the Rescorla-Wagner Model of Conditioning: - States learning is conceptualized in terms of associations between conditioned (CS) and unconditioned (US) stimuli. - A "strong association" means the CS signals/predicts the US :) - Occurs with learning; when these stimuli are paired on discrete trials.

What does Rescorla's Learned Helplessness propose?

Learned Helplessness results from situations in which no perceived connection exists between a response and a reinforcer, suggesting to an individual that responses and outcomes are unrelated.

What did he study (specifically)?

Researched animals' behavior and learning, behavioral neuroscience, memory and learning, and more specifically, the Associative Learning Process

What did Rescorla prove about Classical Conditioning?

Showed that in classical conditioning, pairing two stimuli doesn't always produce the same level of conditioning...Conditioning works better if the conditioned stimuli acts as a reliable signal that predicts the appearance of unconditioned stimuli.

What did Rescorla's model resemble?

This was a "formal model" for the work with classical conditioning that Ivan Pavlov conducted (1968) - Behaviorism & Classical Conditioning!

What were the results of Rescorla's model?

What the results suggested was that the simple learning observed in Pavlovian conditioning arises from an information processing system sensitive to the contingencies between stimuli