Sometimes Opponent Process (Sop) Model, in Conditioning | Research & Encyclopedia Articles

Sometimes Opponent Process (Sop) Model, in Conditioning

Sometimes opponent process (SOP) is an associative, real-time, quantitative theory of Pavlovian conditioning. As such, it describes basic principles from which the behavioral regularities of Pavlonian conditioning can be deduced, and it makes predictions about yetto-be observed Pavlovian phenomena. It specifies rules for stimulus representation, how learning occurs, and how learning that cannot be observed directly in translated into performance. This article does not present the equations that describe these principles, but they are available in related articles (Mazur and Wagner, 1982; Wagner, 1981).

Sop's Basic Principles

Theories of learning assume that experiences are recorded in a theoretical memory system. They describe how that memory system is conceptualized, how experiences come to be represented, and how memories affect behavior. As for any theory, these basic principles are the assumptions the theory makes from which the predictions will follow. A good theory strives to explain the observable phenomena through a priori assumptions that are as few and as simple as possible.

SOP assumes that experiences activate corresponding theoretical representations in the memory system. For example, a cat hears the sound of a can opener and then is fed; these events may activate corresponding sound and food representations.

Sometimes Opponent Process (Sop) Model, in Conditioning article

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