Edward Tolman (1886-1959) was an American psychologist who developed purposive behaviorism, arguing that animals learn flexible knowledge about their environment, formalized in his 1948 concept of the cognitive map, rather than merely acquiring automatic stimulus-response habits. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
BirthplaceWest Newton, Massachusetts 1 Nationality / Culture Defining ContributionDeveloped purposive behaviorism, proposing that animals learn flexible internal knowledge of their environment, formalized as cognitive maps, rather than merely automatic stimulus-response habits. 1 Notable WorkCognitive Maps in Rats and Men (1948) 1 Connections
Associated With
Demonstrated latent learning in rats that learned maze layouts without reinforcement, revealing the learning only once a reward was introduced.
Additional Source Wikipedia: Edward C. TolmanCareer overview section
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1. Wikipedia: Edward C. Tolman
Wikimedia FoundationQuote
November 19, 1959
Purposive behaviorism section
animals could learn facts about the world that they could subsequently use in a flexible manner
Associated With: Neobehaviorism, Career overview section
Through Tolman's theories and works, he founded what is now a branch of psychology known as purposive behaviorism.
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