Animal intelligence: Experimental studiesThorndike, Edward L. (Edward Lee)
Science
Animal intelligence: Experimental studies
Thorndike, Edward L. (Edward Lee)
Animal intelligence; Psychology, Comparative
was repeated later in the day with the same result. Record:—By himself,
10 F. Put through 80 times. F 65 (a) [the (a) refers to a note of his
unrepeated chance success with his head]. No similar act unsuccessfully
attempted. Influence of tuition, none.
With the chute mechanisms the record would be of the same nature. With
them I put the animal through generally by taking his paw, held out
through the wire netting of the cage, and making the movement with it.
In one experiment (No. 3 with QQ chute) the first 58 trials were made by
taking the monkey outside the cage and holding him instead of having him
put his paw through the netting for me to take.
Many of the experiments were with mechanisms which had previously
been used in experiments concerning the ability to learn from seeing
me operate them. And the following Table (12) includes the results of
experiments of both sorts. The results of experiments of the ‘on chair’
type are in Table 13. In cases where the same apparatus was used for both
purposes, the sort of training which was given first is that where an A
is placed.
In the first four experiments with No. 1 there was some struggling and
agitation on his part while being held and put through the act. After
that there was none in his case except occasional playfulness, and there
was never any with No. 3 after the first third of the first experiment.
The monkeys soon formed the habit of keeping still, because it was only
when still that I put them through the act and that food resulted. After
you once get them so that they can be held and their arms taken without
their clinging to you, they quickly learn to adapt themselves to the
experiments.
With No. 1, out of 8 cases where he had of himself failed (in five of the
cases he had also failed after being shown by me), he succeeded after
being put through (13, 21, 51, 10, 7, 80, and 10 times) in two cases (QQ
(chute) and RR (wood plug). The act was unlike the one taught him in the
former case.
TABLE 12
Table headings:
Column A: SUBJECT. DATE. ACT
Column B: TIMES TRIED ALONE, WITH RESULT
Column C: NUMBER OF TIMES ATTENTION ATTRACTED
Column D: RESULT
Column E: NUMBER OF TIMES SHOWN BY ME
Column F: RESULT IN TRIALS AFTER BEING SHOWN BY ME
Column G: NUMBER OF TIMES PUT THROUGH THE ACT
Column H: RESULT IN TRIALS AFTER BEING PUT THROUGH THE ACT
Column I: COMPARISON OF ACT USED WITH ACT TAUGHT
Column J: SIMILAR ACT ATTEMPTED THOUGH UNSUCCESSFULLY
Column K: ACT DONE ONCE OR MORE, BUT NOT REPEATED IN SPITE OF
REPEATED TUITION
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