In the early 20th century, an American psychologist made a discovery that shattered centuries of assumptions about human learning. Contrary to the prevailing belief that insight or reasoning struck like a lightning bolt, he demonstrated that learning is a gradual process, one built through repetition and reinforcement. This revelation was so profound it not only changed the way psychologists understood behavior but also reshaped fields as diverse as education and technology.
Edward Thorndike’s puzzle box experiments revealed this gradual process. He placed hungry cats in enclosures requiring them to perform specific actions, like pulling a lever, to escape and get food. At first, their actions were random, but over repeated trials, they escaped faster, proving that learning occurs through trial and error reinforced by rewards.
From this, Thorndike developed the Law of Effect, which showed that actions followed by rewards are more likely to be repeated. This principle became a foundation for psychology, shaping fields like education and even machine learning techniques such as reinforcement learning, where systems improve through feedback and repetition.
Thorndike’s insight is both simple and transformative: repetition matters. Whether it’s a child learning to read, an athlete perfecting their swing, or artificial intelligence mastering a game, the same rule applies—improvement doesn’t come from sudden brilliance but from consistent, repeated steps.
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