A way to install conditioned modulation in the Rescorla-Wagner axiom: the amplifier model of Pavlovian conditioning (AMP)

Abstract

Although the Rescorla-Wagner axiom has been successful in explaining and predicting many phenomena in Pavlovian conditioning, it offers no explanation for the ability of stimuli to modulate conditioned responding to other stimuli (i.e., the occasion-setting effect). This article provides a mathematical model for Pavlovian conditioned modulation by adding simple rules to the Rescorla-Wagner axiom. In spite of its rudimentary stage, the proposed model can explain many of the basic findings of modulatory learning and suggests some new areas of research.