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Related Experiment Videos

Stimulus class membership established via stimulus-reinforcer relations.

W V Dube, W J McIlvane, H A Mackay

    Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior
    |March 1, 1987
    PubMed
    Summary

    This study shows that reinforcers can become part of stimulus classes, and new stimuli can join these classes through their relationship with reinforcers, demonstrating flexible learning in subjects.

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    Area of Science:

    • Behavioral Psychology
    • Cognitive Science
    • Learning and Conditioning

    Background:

    • Conditional discrimination learning is crucial for understanding complex behavior.
    • The role of reinforcers in stimulus class formation is not fully understood.
    • Previous research has established stimulus equivalence but less on reinforcer inclusion.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate if reinforcers can acquire stimulus properties and become members of established stimulus classes.
    • To examine if new stimuli can be incorporated into stimulus classes through their association with reinforcers.
    • To explore the flexibility of stimulus class membership based on changing contingencies.

    Main Methods:

    • Employed an arbitrary matching-to-sample procedure with two mentally retarded subjects.

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  • Trained conditional discriminations involving spoken names, objects, and printed symbols, linked to specific food reinforcers (F1, F2).
  • Assessed identity-matching and tested generalization with novel stimuli (X1, X2) and altered reinforcement contingencies.

    • Main Results:

    • Subjects demonstrated stimulus class formation including names, objects, symbols, and initially, foods.
    • Novel stimuli (X1, X2) were incorporated into stimulus classes based on their associated reinforcers without explicit training.
    • Stimulus class membership, including that of X1 and X2, shifted when reinforcement contingencies were reversed.

    Conclusions:

    • Provides evidence that reinforcers can function as members of stimulus classes.
    • Demonstrates that new stimuli can become members of stimulus classes through their relationship with reinforcers.
    • Highlights the dynamic nature of stimulus class membership and its susceptibility to changes in reinforcement.