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“Theories of Learning is now in its fifthedition. Ernest Hilgard wrote the first twoeditions, published in 19481 and 1956;2 Icame aboard as a coauthor in the thirdedition (1966)3 and assumed moreresponsibility for the book’s contents in itsfourth (1975)4 and fifth (1981) editions. Thefirst edition appeared when learning theorywas the dominant orientation of the mainmovers of psychology, when Clark Hull,Edwin Guth-rie, Wolfgang Kohler, KennethSpence, Edward Tolman, and B.F. Skinnerwere vigorous spokesmen for their view ofpsychology. In those days, theorizing inpsychology was practically synonymous withtheorizing about learning and behavior. Thefirst edition of Theories of Learningsummarized the conflicting perspectives insuch a fair manner that it was immediatelyadopted by the field as the authoritativetextbook. Had citation indices beencomputed in those days, the text would havebeen a Citation Classic from its inception.The book’s balanced, authoritative naturewas prototypic of the many insightful reviewsfor which Hilgard became famousprofessionally and for which he wasrecognized with the NAS Award for Scientific

Reviewing given in 1984 by the NationalAcademy of Sciences.5 The award wasestablished by Annual Reviews, Inc., andISI®.

“Successive revisions of the book havefollowed the developments of the field. Newmaterial and chapters were added astheorists developed their positions inresponse to empirical results and arguments.As the field gradually changed its focus, toless emphasis on animal conditioningstudies, new chapters were added on humanmemory, information processing, computersimulation and mathematical models oflearning, and neurophysiology of learningand behavior. Since I participated in thoseresearch developments, Hilgard invited meto write chapters on them for the thirdedition. Although the text could be classifiedtechnically as a ‘history’ book, I have tried inthe fourth and fifth editions to relate eachhistorical position to still-active issues inrecent research. I have been continuallysurprised at how easy it is, in moderndebates, to detect issues that were foreseenand argued about by our forefathers. Besidesupdating each chapter, new editions alsoreview and integrate recent developments,so that the text continues to have acontemporary flavor in its topics.

“Over its 36 years, Theories of Learning hasbeen a highly recommended and usedtextbook. Solso6 surveyed American andCanadian graduate psychology departmentsfor their lists of recommended readings forstudents preparing for their PhDcomprehensive or qualifying exams.Theories of Learning was among the fewmost frequently recommended readings inthe 1979 survey. Moreover, it was the onlypsychology text that had been in this mostrecommended category throughout allprevious, similar surveys of reading lists,conducted in 1971, 1966, 1958, and 1953.Thus, Theories of Learning has stood the testof time in a field that has been characterizedby rapid scientific change. Perhaps the texthas endured because it has changed with thetimes, while striving to be authoritative,balanced, and accurate. A sixth edition iscurrently being planned.”

CC/NUMBER 26JUNE 25, 1984This Week’s Citation Classic ™

Bower G H & Hilgard E R. Theories of learning. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall,1981. 647 p.[Stanford University, CA]

This textbook reviews the major theories andsystematic viewpoints regarding thepsychology of learning and behavior.Historically significant positions arediscussed and evaluated in relation to currentresearch. Additional chapters on recentdevelopments review new findings inconditioning, memory, school learning,neurophysiology, and computer modeling oflearning. [The Science Citation Index® (SCI®)and the Social Sciences Citation Index®

(SSCI®) indicate that all five editions of thisbook have been cited in over 655 publicationssince 1955.]

Gordon H. BowerDepartment of Psychology

Stanford UniversityStanford, CA 94305

May 25, 1984

1. Hilgard E R. Theories of learning. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1948. 409 p.2. ............... . Theories of learning. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1956. 563 p.3. Hilgard E R & Bower G H. Theories of learning. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1966. 661 p.4.. ........................ . Theories of learning. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1975. 698 p.5. Garfield E. The 1984 NAS Award for Excellence in Scientific Reviewing: E.R. Hilgard receives sixth

award for his work in psychology. Current Contents (24):3-6, 11 June 1984.6. Solso R. Twenty-five years of recommended readings in psychology. Amer. Psychol. 34:703-5, 1979.