This article is about psychological theory. For software engineering company, see
EPAM Systems.
EPAM (Elementary Perceiver and Memorizer) is a psychological theory of
learning and
memory implemented as a computer program. Originally designed by
Herbert A. Simon and
Edward Feigenbaum to simulate phenomena in
verbal learning, it has been later adapted to account for data on the psychology of
expertise and
concept formation. It was influential in formalizing the concept of a
chunk. In EPAM, learning consists in the growth of a
discrimination network.
EPAM was written in
IPL/V.
The project was started in the late 1950s with the aim to learn
nonsense syllables.[1] The term nonsense is used because the learned patterns are not connected with a meaning but they are standing for their own. The software is working internally by creating a decision tree. An improved version is available under the name “EPAM-VI”.[2]
Feigenbaum, E. A., & Simon, H. A. (1962). A theory of the serial position effect. British Journal of Psychology, 53, 307–320.
Feigenbaum, E. A., & Simon, H. A. (1984). EPAM-like models of recognition and learning. Cognitive Science, 8, 305–336.
Gobet, F., Richman, H. B., Staszewski, J. J., & Simon, H. A. (1997). Goals, representations, and strategies in a concept attainment task: The EPAM model. The Psychology of Learning and Motivation, 37, 265–290.
Richman, H. B., Gobet, F., Staszewski, J. J., & Simon, H. A. (1996). Perceptual and memory processes in the acquisition of expert performance: The EPAM model. In K. A. Ericsson (Ed.), The road to excellence (pp. 167–187). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Richman, H. B., Staszewski, J. J., & Simon, H. A. (1995). Simulation of expert memory with EPAM IV. Psychological Review, 102, 305–330.