What did John Dewey say about the reflex arc?

In it Dewey argued that the neural circuitry of the reflex arc was being misinterpreted by behaviourist psychology which was using stimulus and response as basic units.

What is the reflex arc concept?

Abstract. Discusses the concept of the reflex arc. The conscious stimulus or sensation, and the conscious response or motion, have a special genesis or motivation, and a special end or function. The reflex arc theory neglects this genesis and function, and gives only the disjointed parts of the whole process.

Who wrote the reflex arc concept in psychology?

The Reflex Arc Concept in Psychology by John Dewey 1896. John Dewey 1896.

Who discovered the reflex arc?

1649 – René Descartes, French Philosopher and Scientist: Proposes the first mechanistic understanding of what would later be call the reflex arc. According to Descartes, the actions of the body are reflex actions, but actions of the mind are meaningful, conscious, and voluntary.

Which of the following is true about Thorndike’s explanation for how his cats escaped from the puzzle boxes?

Which of the following is true about Thorndike’s explanation for how his cats escaped from the puzzle boxes? Thorndike’s cats were in a panic situation and could not act intelligently, as they would if put into a more natural environment.

What was Edward Thorndike cat experiment?

Hungry cats were individually placed into a box that could be opened by the animal via a device such as a latch. Once outside of the box, the cats gained access to food (a positive reinforcer). Thorndike found that the cats took less and less time to get out of the box the more trials of training had been given.

What would Thorndike say his cats learn about in their puzzle box experiment?

In successive trials the cats would learn that pressing the lever would have favourable consequences and they would adopt this behaviour, becoming increasingly quick at pressing the lever.

What are the 5 elements of the reflex arc?

FIGURE 7-1 A reflex arc contains five fundamental components: 1, a receptor; 2, a sensory neuron; 3, one or more synapses in the CNS; 4, a motor neuron; and 5, a target organ, usually a muscle.

What did John Dewey say about reflex arc?

John Dewey. The Reflex Arc Concept in Psychology. That the greater demand for a unifying principle and controlling working hypothesis in psychology should come at just the time when all generalizations and classifications are most questioned and questionable is natural enough.

What is the reflex arc theory?

The conscious stimulus or sensation, and the conscious response or motion, have a special genesis or motivation, and a special end or function. The reflex arc theory, by neglecting, by abstracting from, this genesis and this function gives us one disjointed part of a process as if it were the whole.

Is the reflex arc the fundamental psychical unity?

What is needed is that the principle underlying the idea of the reflex arc as the fundamental psychical unity shall react into and determine the values of its constitutive factors.

What is the reflex reflex response?

Moreover, it is the motor response which assists in discovering and constituting the stimulus. It is the holding of the movement at a certain stages which creates the sensation, which throws it into relief. It is the co�rdination which unifies that which the reflex arc concept gives us only in disjointed fragments.