What did Pavlov mean by a cortical mosaic, and how was that mosaic thought to be causally related to behavior?
Pavlov believed in Sechenov’s theories and he supported the notion that all the activities related to the central nervous system can be characterized as either excitation or inhibition.
He believed in reflexive behavior. He agreed that it is caused by antecedent stimulation, though both of them added that organisms learn to inhibit this type of behavior with experience.
Cortical mosaic, as coined by Pavlov, defines or characterizes the pattern of excitation and inhibition taking place in the brain at any given time. It also helps in determining the type of response given by the organism to its environment, at any given point of time. This mosaic has been related to behavior.
It has been seen that if a conditioned stimulus is presented to an organism consecutively and is no longer followed by an unconditioned stimulus, the conditioned response will diminish or vanish gradually. This point will be termed as extinction. On the other hand, if some time is allowed to elapse after this extinction and the conditioned stimulus is presented, a conditioned response will be elicited.