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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

1987

Western Michigan University

Experimental Analysis of Behavior

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Ratio Pausing And The Determination Of Discriminative Operant Latencies, Thomas M. Bell Dec 1987

Ratio Pausing And The Determination Of Discriminative Operant Latencies, Thomas M. Bell

Dissertations

The latency between discriminative stimulus onset and initiation of a corresponding ratio requirement (RR) was studied in pigeons using a two-key discrete-trial procedure with three-component multiple schedules. The two-key procedure allowed measurement of response-reinforcer relations on a "constant" key, and stimulus-reinforcer relations on a "stimulus" key. The first experiment showed regular between-session effects as equivalent fixed-ratio (FR) components were raised over several phases and then lowered. A direct relation was observed between latency and RR for each of ten subjects. Initial stimulus-key pecking showed several trends, the most prevalent being an inverse relation to RR.

Experiment 2 demonstrated within-session separations …


Assessment And Training Of Visual And Tactual Stimulus Equivalence, Brooke Ann Rigney Apr 1987

Assessment And Training Of Visual And Tactual Stimulus Equivalence, Brooke Ann Rigney

Masters Theses

Visual-tactual equivalence was examined within the stimulus equivalence paradigm originally developed by Sidman in studies of verbal behavior (1971). Experiment I assessed for equivalence between tactually and visually presented objects. In Experiment II, colors and textures were added to the objects and the effect of modality distinctive stimuli on equivalence was examined. Experiment III then studied the establishment of equivalence with these modality distinctive stimuli using the Sidman stimulus equivalence paradigm.

Visual-tactual equivalence was demonstrated in Experiment I. Experiment II demonstrated that equivalence could be disrupted by modality distinctive stimuli. Experiment III then showed that equivalence could be demonstrated between …


Differential Response Latencies Using Auditory Stimuli, Albert Edward Neal Apr 1987

Differential Response Latencies Using Auditory Stimuli, Albert Edward Neal

Dissertations

Previous research has identified and isolated the elicited (autoshaped) control of pigeons' response latencies. The present research, using auditory frequencies as discriminative stimuli, was designed to eliminate the intrusion of this elicited control.

Two experiments are presented, both using a discrete-trial, two-component multiple schedule. In Experiment 1, in which a two-key arrangement was used, pigeons were required to peck a continuously-illuminated left key when one of two different frequencies, each correlated with a different amount of reinforcement, was presented behind the illuminated right key. In Experiment 2, in which a three-key arrangement was used, pigeons were required to peck either …