The first text to integrate behavioral and cognitive approaches to learning and memory, this engaging textbook emphasizes human research, reflecting the field's evolution. Learning and Memory also recognizes the vital contribution of animal research, covering all historically important studies. Written in a lively and conversational style, this second edition encourages students to think critically. One example is its exploration of the Rescorla-Wagner model, the most important theory of conditioning, now further streamlined to improve student comprehension. Another is the addition of critical-thinking questions, which encourage students to evaluate their reactions to the material they've read, and relate findings to their own lives. Research includes an emphasis on practical applications such as treatments for phobias, addictions, and autism; the arguments for and against corporal punishment; whether recovered memories and eyewitness testimony should be believed; and effective techniques for studying. The text concludes with an overview of neural networks and deep learning.
'This undergraduate textbook is remarkable. To my knowledge no other book provides such a comprehensive coverage of the topics of learning and memory. Moreover, this unique breadth of coverage has not been gained by treating topics superficially. Quite the contrary, from start to finish readers are provided with a detailed understanding of all the major issues that have confronted the study of learning and memory. Finally, the foregoing achievements are crowned by the wonderful manner in which the book is written. The reader is treated as an equal to the author, and even complex issues, such as formal models of learning, are presented in a clear and engaging manner that sets this book head and shoulders above other undergraduate texts on learning and memory.' Professor John Pearce, Cardiff University, Fellow of the Royal Society