Theories on Child Development by Edward Thorndike

Connectionism

• According to "An Introduction to the History of Psychology," Thorndike's theories of education and childhood development are based on behaviors rather than mental states. Thorndike believed that learning was a process of forming and strengthening connections in the brain through the repeated practice of behaviors. Thorndike considered learning to be a process of trial and error in which actions with desirable consequences are repeated while actions with undesirable consequences are not. Thorndike's theories have been very influential in childhood education, according to the book, "An Introduction to the History of Psychology."

The Law of Effect

• According to Thorndike's theories, if you give your child a cookie to stop him from crying, he will probably cry the next time he wants a cookie because you rewarded the behavior. If you don't get him a cookie when he cries, he will be less likely to cry the next time. If you punish him for crying, Thorndike initially believed the child will be even less likely to repeat the behavior. Thorndike called this principle the "law of effect."

Revisions

• Thorndike revised his own theories when experiments failed to confirm his viewpoint. "An Introduction to the History of Psychology" notes that Thorndike revised his "law of effect" when his experiments demonstrated that punishments did not weaken a behavior although rewards did strengthen it. According to Thorndike's revised theory, punishment won't make your child any less likely to cry for a cookie. Rewarding the behaviors you want to encourage is more effective than punishing the behaviors you want to discourage.

Education

• Thorndike also tested the theory that the study of a complex subject such as Latin would improve performance in other subjects and concluded that this was not the case even though it was widely believed at the time. Thorndike's research showed that skills in one subject would only transfer to another subject to the extent that the two subjects were similar. For example, a teen who takes Latin in high school might have an easier time learning French in college, but the study of Latin will have no effect on her ability to learn math. The traditional school curriculum was revised because of his research.