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Placing a rat in a maze symbolized the beginning of neobehaviorism.

Observing intervening variables led to concepts of hypothesis, trial-and-error expectations, beliefs, and, ultimately, a cognitive map. Tolman found after initially placing a rat in a maze, they were perplexed in their new environment. But as the rat began to adjust to their new environment, they developed a hypothesis to determine what constituted successful and unsuccessful turns. Then, as the complexity became apparent, the rat typically stopped and literally pondered their next steps, which Tolman called trial and error. As the rat began to understand that by turning left and right some success occurred, they created expectations and even beliefs of how to proceed. After finding the end of the maze, the rat had developed a cognitive map which led to a quicker journey upon their return to the maze.