Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Second-Order Schedules: Manipulation Of Brief-Stimulus Duration At Component Completion, Steven L. Cohen, Joan E. Hughes, D. Alan Stubbs

Psychology Faculty Scholarship

In a second-order schedule, fixed-interval components were reinforced according to a variable-interval schedule. A brief stimulus accompanied the completion of each fixed interval. Brief-stimulus duration was varied across conditions from 0.5 to 8 sec. Patterning was greater the longer the duration of the stimulus. Additionally, exposure to relatively long brief-stimulus durations enhanced patterning upon reexposure to shorter brief-stimulus durations.