Get complete information on Hull’s Reinforcement Theory

Hull explained learning on the basis of reinforcement. According to this theory, any stimulus occurring ‘in close temporal contiguity’ with a reinforced response becomes connected with that response making it more likely to recur. It is the reinforcing stimulus that determines the relative strength of a possible alternative response in a learning situation.

Hull’s theory has been much useful in the field of education. Since, it stresses on motivation and motivation is the very heart of learning. As such Hull’s theory has been of much help in facilitating learning in children, especially.

Also, this theory helps the students to attain knowledge of different subjects. It develops interest among the students for the subject-matter.

This theory helps in creative works. It also helps in the development of intellect, logic and thinking. It enables the students to solve complex problems. It aids in the teaching of literature, art and music. It helps in habit formation. It helps in learning the skills. This theory encourages carrying on researches in various fields.

Transfer of Learning and its theories:

An important issue in optimizing learning is the extent to which the learning of one thing facilitates the learning of something else. If everything we learned was specific to the situation in which, it was learned, the amount of learning that would have to be crammed into a lifetime would be phenomenal. Fortunately, most learning is readily transferable with some phenomenal. Fortunately, most learning is readily transferable with some modification to a number of different situations.

The influence that learning one task may have on the subsequent learning of another is called transfer of learning. The term positive transfer is used when learning one task does facilitate learning another. If one is a good tennis player, it is easier to learn to play squash; this is positive transfer. But, transfer is not always positive; when interference occurs, we have negative transfer.

There are numerous examples of negative transfer in everyday life. When driving a car with automatic transmission after having been accustomed to one with a stick shift, we may find ourselves depressing a nonexistent clutch pedal. When changing from a pedal-brake to a hand-brake bicycle, we may still try to press back or the pedal when we have to stop quickly.

And the transition from driving on the right-hand side of the street to the British procedure of driving on the left is difficult for many American visitors to Great Britain. The original habit is so over-learned that even after driving successfully on the left for some time, an individual may revert to right-side driving when required to act quickly in an emergency.