Edward Thorndike

Edward L. Thorndike
Born
Edward Lee Thorndike

(1874-08-31)August 31, 1874
DiedAugust 9, 1949(1949-08-09) (aged 74)
NationalityAmerican
EducationRoxbury Latin, Wesleyan, Harvard, Columbia
OccupationPsychologist
Employer(s)Teachers College, Columbia University
Known forFather of modern educational psychology
TitleProfessor
SpouseElizabeth Moulton (married August 29, 1900)

Edward Lee "Ted" Thorndike (August 31, 1874 – August 9, 1949) was an American psychologist. He spent most of entire career at Teachers College, Columbia University. He worked on ethology and the learning process, which led to the theory of connectionism and helped lay the scientific foundation for modern educational psychology.

Thorndike also worked on industrial problems, such as employee exams and testing. He was a member of the board of the Psychological Corporation and served as president of the American Psychological Association in 1912.

Thorndike's law

Thorndike's law of effect basically states that “responses that produce a satisfying effect in a particular situation become more likely to occur again in that situation, and responses that produce a discomforting effect become less likely to occur again in that situation”.

Books

Thorndike's textbooks were widely used in psychology courses for teacher training in the first part of the 20th century:

References

  1. ↑ Karier, Clarence J. (1986). Scientists of the mind: intellectual founders of modern psychology. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 9780252011825.
  2. ↑ Saettler, L. Paul 2004, Evolution of American educational technology. IAP. ISBN 1593111398
  3. ↑ Zimmerman, Barry J.; Schunk, Dale H. (2003), Educational Psychology: A Century of Contributions, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, ISBN 0805836829
  4. ↑ Hergenhahn B.R. & Olson, Matthew H. 2005. An Introduction to the theories of learning. Pearson Education. ISBN 978-81-317-2056-1