Associationist Theories of Thought

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In general words, Associationism is a theory explaining how different items combine in the human mind to produce thoughts, feelings, and emotions. The key tenets of Associationism are rather simple: all items are associated in the human mind through sets of experiences. The items are derived from diverse experiences and are further combined to form a thought or a feeling. For example, a child learns not to touch fire because the kid associates it with pain, the pain that was memorized from the experience with fire. Furthermore, items can combine to form a complex idea based on several experiences.

Associationist psychology is based on two fundamental doctrines. The first doctrine is that the more recondite phenomena of the mind are formed out of simple parts. The second one is that the mental law is the law of association. Overall, associationistic theorists try to explain the mental phenomena by trying to show the final product of the small experiences connected through complex networks of associations. In other words, associationism is an attempt to explain mental phenomena through looking at small experiences and mental laws of association. John Stuart Mill and George Berkeley are two of the most prominent representatives of the Associationistic theory (Wilson 1990).

John Mill linked associationist psychology to the issues of moral education and social reform. Interestingly enough, Mill argued that the contents of human minds (namely beliefs and moral feelings) are the ultimate products of diverse experiences people go through. These small experiences are connected by associationistic laws. The different combinations of these experiences may lead to different shapes of human nature. For example, when new experiences are gained, the mind of the person is changing because another connection network of experiences is created. Associationism, as Mill suggested, is based on the assumption that problems of people can be explained by their situations (or associations promoted by these situations) rather than by intrinsic factors (Wilson 1990).

Special attention should be paid to the impact made by Mill on equality between a woman and a man. Mill argued that to ensure equality among men and women, the experiences of females should be changed. Consequently, the change in experiences will result in the change in associations, and ultimately it will change their minds. Mill rejected the idea that subordination of women is a natural order. He tried to show that the social superiority of men was also the result of specific experiences that formed the particular associations in minds of both genders (Skorupski 1989).

George Berkeley, on the other side, explored the theory of associationism through the senses in general and touch in particular. Berkeley believed that touching provides people with full access to the world. Moreover, Berkeley put forward the idea that the vision of an object does not give true information about the items. For example, the tower has a determinate shape and size but depending on the distance between the tower and an observer, the person gets continually changing visual image (Berman 1994).

From the psychological perspective of Berkeley, it happens because there is no associationistic connection between vision and tactic ideas. Nevertheless, some of Berkeley’s assumptions are very similar to Mill’s. In particular, both believed that associations are the results of experiences. From one side, Mill focused on social experiences such as upbringing and the role played by women in society. Berkeley, on the other side, focused on personal experiences, the ones that are not obligatory related to the social factors. Berkley formed his theory of associations on the sensory experiences or the processes of world exploration through touch. Of course, the concept of touch has a broad meaning in this context (Winker 1989).

Associationism is highly relevant to modern-day psychology. Theories of Associationism marked the beginning of the development of cognitive psychology explaining the conscious and unconscious response of humans to diverse experiences. Associationism sets the clear connection between experience and thoughts. For example, learning is analyzed as the process of the formation of associations between unrelated information. Most people use association techniques without even being aware of them. Associations are often used to remember the birthday of the friend or answers to the test questions. Thus, Mill and Berkeley set a solid foundation for the development of modern cognitive psychology.

Questions

What is associationism?
Associationism is the theory of psychology explaining the connection between thoughts and past experiences. It explains how people learn and how they react to different situations.
What was the key argument of Mill on associations?
Mill focused his attention on the importance of social factors’ information of experiences. Mill tried to analyze social phenomena by looking closely at the social factors shaping the experiences of different groups of people.
What was the key argument of Berkeley on associations?
Berkley explored association through the theory of touch and self-exploration. Unlike other associationistic theorists, Berkley ignored the external factors shaping the nature and essence of experiences.
What is the similarity between Mill’s and Berkeley’s views on associations?
Both theorists focused their attention on the importance of past experiences for exploration of the world and learning new information. Mill and Berkeley would agree with each other that experiences are the small elements of the association.
What is the modern application of associationism in psychology?
Cognitive psychology is the direct manifestation of the associationistic theories of Mill, Berkley, and other theorists.

References

Berman, D. (1994) George Berkeley: Idealism and the Man. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

Skorupski, J. (1989) John Stuart Mill. London: Routledge.

Wilson, F. (1990) Psychological Analysis and the Philosophy of John Stuart Mill. Toronto: Toronto Univ. Press.

Winkler, K. (1989) Berkeley: An Interpretation. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

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Associationist Theories of Thought

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