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Updated: Jul 26, 2026
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Cross-Modal Multivariate Pattern Analysis
Published on: November 9, 2011
Serial and simultaneous feature positive discriminations in a human Skinner box
P Dibbets1, J H.R. Maes, J M.H. Vossen
1NICI/Department of Biological Psychology, University of Nijmegen, P.O. Box 9104, 6500 HE, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
Behavioural Processes
|July 2, 2002
Summary
Feature positive discrimination learning differed between serial and simultaneous presentations. Feature 'F' affected transfer targets less in serial learning, but counterconditioning did not alter initial discrimination in either setup.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Human Learning
Background:
- Discrimination learning paradigms are crucial for understanding associative processes.
- Feature positive (F+) discrimination involves learning to respond to a target (T) when a feature (F) is present.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare feature "F" associative properties in serial versus simultaneous F+ discrimination.
- To investigate the impact of transfer tests and counterconditioning on discrimination performance.
Main Methods:
- Human participants learned serial (F-->T+/T-) or simultaneous (FT+/T-) feature positive discriminations in a Skinner box.
- Associative strength of the feature "F" was assessed via transfer tests and counterconditioning.
Main Results:
- The feature "F" had a lesser effect on transfer target responding in the serial condition compared to the simultaneous condition.
- Counterconditioning of the feature "F" did not influence initial discrimination performance in either learning setup.
Conclusions:
- Findings suggest differences in how features acquire associative properties based on presentation order (serial vs. simultaneous).
- Results are interpreted within theoretical frameworks including occasion setting, elemental/configural learning, and neural network models.
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