Resurgence of derived stimulus relations

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Psychology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Resurgence, the re-emergence of previously learned behavior, is well-documented in operant conditioning.
• However, resurgence has not been previously observed in derived relational responses.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether resurgence occurs in derived relational responding.
• To examine the influence of new learning and extinction on previously established conditional discriminations.

Main Methods:

• Twenty-three undergraduates underwent conditional discrimination training using a matching-to-sample paradigm, establishing initial equivalence classes.
• Stimuli were reorganized, and training was repeated to establish new equivalence classes.
• Testing involved extinction phases and trials assessing symmetry and equivalence to observe response patterns.

Main Results:

• Most participants demonstrated response patterns consistent with altered conditional discriminations after reorganization.
• During extinction, participants initially continued responding based on the most recent training.
• Crucially, participants exhibited resurgence of responding consistent with earlier training when exposed to symmetry and equivalence trials.

Conclusions:

• Derived relational responding is susceptible to resurgence.
• This finding extends the phenomenon of resurgence beyond traditional operant behavior.
• The results suggest that earlier learned relational structures can re-emerge following new learning and extinction procedures.