Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Avoidance Learning and Learned Helplessness01:14

Avoidance Learning and Learned Helplessness

1.9K
Avoidance learning and learned helplessness are critical concepts in understanding behavioral responses to negative stimuli.
Avoidance learning occurs when an organism learns that a specific behavior can prevent an unpleasant outcome. For example, a student who receives a bad grade may start studying harder to avoid future poor grades. This behavior persists even when the negative outcome is no longer present. Avoidance learning is powerful because it maintains behavior in the absence of the...
1.9K
Cognitive Learning01:21

Cognitive Learning

487
Cognitive learning is based on purposive behavior, incidental learning, and insight learning.
E. C. Tolman's theory of purposive behavior emphasizes that much behavior is goal-directed. He argued that to understand behavior, we must look at the entire sequence of actions leading to a goal. For instance, high school students study hard, not just due to past reinforcement but also to achieve the goal of getting into a good college.
Tolman introduced the idea that behavior is influenced by...
487
Purposive Learning01:22

Purposive Learning

191
E. C. Tolman emphasized the purposiveness of behavior — the idea that much of our behavior is goal-directed. For instance, employees who aim for a promotion work diligently to meet their targets. Tolman argued that when classical conditioning and operant conditioning occur, the organism acquires certain expectations. In classical conditioning, a child might fear a dog because they expect it to bite. In operant conditioning, a person might consistently work overtime because they expect a...
191
Hindsight Biases01:12

Hindsight Biases

3.8K
Hindsight bias leads you to believe that the event you just experienced was predictable, even though it really wasn’t. In other words, you knew all along that things would turn out the way they did. Can you relate this to the phrase "Hindsight is 20/20" now? 
3.8K
Fundamental Attribution Error01:14

Fundamental Attribution Error

13.0K
According to some social psychologists, people tend to overemphasize internal factors as explanations—or attributions—for the behavior of other people. They tend to assume that the behavior of another person is a trait of that person, and to underestimate the power of the situation on the behavior of others. They tend to fail to recognize when the behavior of another is due to situational variables, and thus to the person’s state. This erroneous assumption is...
13.0K
Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping02:05

Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping

39.8K
People can go to great lengths to protect their self-image and present themselves in ways that they want others to see them. Sociologist Erving Goffman presented the idea that a person is like an actor on a stage. Calling his theory dramaturgy, Goffman believed that we use “impression management” to present ourselves to others as we hope to be perceived. Each situation is a new scene, and individuals perform different roles depending on who is present (Goffman, 1959). Think about...
39.8K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Is seeing believing? Linking fixation bias and flexibility with interpretation flexibility.

Cognition & emotion·2026
Same author

Task-based interpretation flexibility predicts real-world emotion regulation variability.

Scientific reports·2026
Same author

Changes in emotional granularity under a population-level stressor predict social anxiety and depressive symptoms.

Journal of research on adolescence : the official journal of the Society for Research on Adolescence·2026
Same author

Associations between attentional disengagement from distressed infant faces and cortisol reactivity are moderated by depressive symptoms in pregnant women: an eye-tracking study.

Archives of women's mental health·2026
Same author

Networks of guilt, shame, pride, and disordered eating in youths show stability over time.

Journal of research on adolescence : the official journal of the Society for Research on Adolescence·2025
Same author

Social reorientation of emotion regulation: Changing roles of family and peers during adolescence.

Emotion (Washington, D.C.)·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 30, 2025

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal
06:45

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Published on: April 18, 2017

6.3K

Learned helplessness: expanding on a goal-directed perspective.

Jessica M Duda1, Jutta Joormann1

  • 1Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, United States.

Cognition & Emotion
|September 2, 2022
PubMed
Summary

This study introduces a new model of learned helplessness, suggesting it arises from a lack of reinforcement when pursuing goals. The generalization of helplessness depends on how similar individuals perceive their goals to be.

Keywords:
Learned helplessnesscognitiongeneralisationgoal-directed

More Related Videos

An Operant Intra-/Extra-dimensional Set-shift Task for Mice
08:35

An Operant Intra-/Extra-dimensional Set-shift Task for Mice

Published on: January 22, 2016

12.3K
Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm
09:00

Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm

Published on: October 3, 2020

4.0K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Aug 30, 2025

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal
06:45

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Published on: April 18, 2017

6.3K
An Operant Intra-/Extra-dimensional Set-shift Task for Mice
08:35

An Operant Intra-/Extra-dimensional Set-shift Task for Mice

Published on: January 22, 2016

12.3K
Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm
09:00

Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm

Published on: October 3, 2020

4.0K

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Behavioral Science

Background:

  • Learned helplessness is a psychological state where individuals feel unable to control or change negative situations.
  • Existing models often focus on external factors, but a cognitive perspective is needed.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review and expand upon a novel cognitive model of learned helplessness proposed by Boddez et al.
  • To integrate operant and goal-directed perspectives on the development of helplessness.
  • To explore cognitive expansions and future research directions.

Main Methods:

  • Theoretical review and commentary on the Boddez et al. model.
  • Analysis of the model from a cognitive psychology perspective.
  • Discussion of potential theoretical expansions and empirical considerations.

Main Results:

  • The Boddez et al. model posits that learned helplessness results from a lack of reinforcement during goal-directed behavior.
  • Subjective perceptions of goal similarity influence the generalization of helplessness.
  • Cognitive factors play a crucial role in the onset and generalization of learned helplessness.

Conclusions:

  • The novel model offers a valuable cognitive framework for understanding learned helplessness.
  • Further research should explore the interplay between goal perception, reinforcement, and helplessness.
  • Integrating cognitive and behavioral perspectives can advance our understanding of this psychological state.