When we think about the learning process, we often focus only on learning that is immediately obvious.
We teach a rat to run through a maze by offering food as a reward for correct responses.
We train a student to raise their hand in class by offering praise for the appropriate behaviors.
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But not all learning is immediately apparent.
Sometimes learning only becomes evident when we need to utilize it.
Discovery of Latent Learning
The term latent learning was coined by Hugh Blodgett in 1929.
Acognitive maprefers to a mental representation of an environment.
Such maps can be formed through observation as well as through trial and error.
These cognitive maps allow people to orient themselves in their environment.
Tolman rejected the standard behaviorist theory of his day that indicated behavior could only be learned by reinforcement.
He asserted that there werecognitive processesinvolved and he applied these concepts to human learning.
Consider your knowledge of various routes in your hometown.
Every day you travel a variety of routes and learn the locations of different businesses in your town.
However, this learning is latent because you are not using it most of the time.
Decades later, neuroscientists have been able to explain this cognitive map at the cellular level.
Specific neurons in thehippocampusand other brain regions are involved in spatial navigation skills.
This notion challenged much of what thebehavioristsbelieved, which was that learning could only occur withreinforcement.
Research has demonstrated that the latent learning phenomenon is, as Hothersall explained, “reliable and robust.”
The burning questions are: Why do the rats learn the whole maze when it doesn’t seem relevant?
And how do investigators demonstrate that this latent learning has taken place?
So how does such latent learning take place?
Some experts suggest that simplysatisfying our curiosityoften serves as the reward for our learning.
Highly Complex Decision Makers
Are humans simple stimulus-response machines or are they highly complex decision-makers?
Consider the idea of distant future rewards as motivators for learning.
They should then continue on this path because it is reinforcing.
However, a cognitive psychologist may consider the complex mental processes taking place.
They consider the way they should go, and the way they shouldn’t go.
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