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The transfer of Cfunc contextual control through equivalence relations
Author(s) -
Perez William F.,
Fidalgo Adriana P.,
Kovac Roberta,
Nico Yara C.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of the experimental analysis of behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.75
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1938-3711
pISSN - 0022-5002
DOI - 10.1002/jeab.150
Subject(s) - equivalence relation , psychology , equivalence (formal languages) , stimulus (psychology) , cognitive psychology , stimulus control , communication , social psychology , computer science , mathematics , neuroscience , discrete mathematics , pure mathematics , nicotine
Derived relational responding is affected by contextual stimuli (Cfunc) that select specific stimulus functions. The present study investigated the transfer of Cfunc contextual control through equivalence relations by evaluating both (a) the maintenance of Cfunc contextual control after the expansion of a relational network, and (b) the establishment of novel contextual stimuli by the transfer of Cfunc contextual control through equivalence relations. Initially, equivalence relations were established and contingencies were arranged so that colors functioned as Cfunc stimuli controlling participants' key‐pressing responses in the presence of any stimulus from a three‐member equivalence network. To investigate the first research question, the three‐member equivalence relations were expanded to five members and the novel members were presented with the Cfunc stimuli in the key‐pressing task. To address the second goal of this study, the colors (Cfunc) were established as equivalent to certain line patterns. The transfer of contextual cue function (Cfunc) was tested replacing the colored backgrounds with line patterns in the key‐pressing task. Results suggest that the Cfunc contextual control was transferred to novel stimuli that were added to the relational network. In addition, the line patterns indirectly acquired the contextual cue function (Cfunc) initially established for the colored backgrounds. The conceptual and applied implications of Cfunc contextual control are discussed.