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The extinction burst: Effects of alternative reinforcement magnitude
Ano: 2025
Abstract Discontinuing reinforcement for an operant behavior sometimes produces a transient increase in responding (i.e., an extinction burst). A matching‐law‐based quantitative model posits that the extinction burst results from the elimination of competition from reinforcement‐related behavior with the onset of extinction. Consistent with this suggestion, retrospective case reviews in applied settings suggest reduced prevalence of the extinction burst when alternative reinforcement is available, but there has been no relevant prospective research. The present experiment used rats and methods approximating conditions in applied settings to examine the effects of alternative reinforcement magnitude on the extinction burst. Lever pressing in baseline produced a one‐pellet reinforcer on a variable‐interval 1.5‐s schedule before a within‐session transition to extinction that included no alternative reinforcement, one pellet, or six pellets of alternative reinforcement. A robust extinction burst was obtained when no alternative reinforcement was available, but the prevalence and magnitude of the extinction burst was reduced with an alternative reinforcer available, more so with the larger alternative reinforcer. The data were well described by the model. Similar prospective studies directly examining related effects in basic and applied settings could strengthen the empirical basis of current practice and further evaluate the utility of the present theoretical approach.
The extinction burst: Effects of reinforcement magnitude
Ano: 2025
Abstract The extinction burst is an increase in an operant behavior early in the transition to extinction. A matching‐law‐based quantitative theory suggests that it results from the elimination of competition from reinforcement‐related behavior that accompanies the transition to extinction. This experiment examined the effects of reinforcement magnitude on the extinction burst with rats. Responding produced either 1 pellet or 6 pellets prior to a within‐session transition to extinction. Baseline response rates were lower with 6 pellets than with 1 pellet but increased more in the first minute of extinction following 6 pellets. Furthermore, an order effect was observed where rats having first experienced extinction following 1 pellet showed a smaller extinction burst when subsequently trained with 6 pellets—an outcome resulting from a faster deceleration of responding during extinction. The model described the data well, including the order effect, when augmented to include the potential asymmetrical influence of learning to discriminate the continued absence of different magnitudes of reinforcement. We conclude that the approach holds promise by formally incorporating the extinction burst into the corpus of matching theory and serving as an example of the utility of better aligning basic research methods and theorizing with areas of applied concern.
The go/no‐go successive matching task and the emergence of arbitrary relational responding: A review
Ano: 2025
Abstract Go/no‐go successive matching (GNG‐matching) tasks are one of several procedures used to establish conditional discriminations. This study presents a systematic review aimed at comparing procedures and outcomes of empirical studies using GNG‐matching tasks for the emergence of symmetry, transitive, and global equivalence relations in humans and non‐humans. A total of 22 articles were analyzed—nine with nonhumans and thirteen with humans. Procedural variables, including trial parameters, stimulus characteristics, and training and testing conditions, were documented alongside the number of participants meeting baseline, symmetry, and global equivalence criteria per experiment. Results showed that 87.5% of human participants demonstrated symmetry, while 58.81% passed global equivalence tests. Among nonhumans, 41.22% demonstrated symmetry, while transitivity was minimally explored, with a 34.83% success rate. A meta‐analysis revealed correlations between trial structure, training/testing parameters, and the immediate emergence of symmetry relations in humans. Variability in outcomes across species may stem from differences in prerequisite skills or procedural inconsistencies. Standardizing parameters is essential to distinguish phylogenetic from procedural influences, as current cross‐species inconsistencies confound results. These findings provide a framework for refining experimental methods, identifying research gaps, and informing discussions on the critical conditions for equivalence‐class formation.
The influence of video prompting with embedded safety checks to teach child passenger safety restraint skills
Ano: 2025
Abstract Motor vehicle collisions are among the leading causes of unintended injury‐related deaths among children under the age of 14. The primary cause of these deaths is the improper use of child passenger safety restraints (CPSRs). Correctly installed CPSRs can decrease the risk of fatal injury by 45% to 95%. To date, no studies have used video prompting with embedded safety checks to teach correct CPSR installation and harnessing in the absence of researcher‐delivered instruction and feedback. We used a concurrent multiple‐baseline‐across‐participants design to evaluate the efficacy of a video‐prompting procedure with embedded safety checks to teach four prospective parents and caregivers CPSR installation and harnessing skills. All participants learned to perform these skills, and these effects maintained for 4 weeks. Furthermore, this training improved all participants' performance of an untrained installation position, vehicle, and harnessing skill, and these effects were largely maintained for 4 weeks.
The rodent electronic nicotine delivery system: Apparatus for voluntary nose‐only e‐cigarette aerosol inhalation
Ano: 2025
Abstract Tobacco use is the leading cause of death globally and in the United States. After decades of decline, driven by decreases in combusted tobacco use, nicotine product use has increased due to electronic nicotine delivery systems, also known as e‐cigarettes or vapes. Preclinical models of nicotine self‐administration can serve as important lodestars in the search for effective intervention and prevention tactics. Current variants of the preclinical models have substantial limitations, however. Therefore, we created the rodent electronic nicotine delivery system (RENDS), a novel low‐cost nonproprietary nose‐only preclinical model of nicotine aerosol self‐administration. We confirmed that RENDS sequesters nicotine aerosol in the nose port by measuring fine particulate matter (PM <2.5 microns) generated by e‐cigarettes. We also showed that rats robustly self‐administer flavored nicotine aerosol, resulting in high blood levels of cotinine (the major nicotine metabolite) and spontaneous somatic withdrawal symptoms. Thus, we provide validation of the operation and function of the RENDS, opening the door to an open‐source preclinical aerosol model of nicotine self‐administration that is relatively low in cost. Four existing operant chambers can be retrofitted with the RENDS for less than $325/chamber. All RENDS diagrams and plans for custom‐designed components are on Open Science Framework ( https://osf.io/x2pqf/?view_only=775b55435b8e428f98e6da384ef7889d ).
The role of bidirectional naming in the emergence of analogical relations in children
Ano: 2025
Abstract The role of bidirectional naming in the emergence of analogical relations was investigated in four typically developing children between the ages 5 and 7 years. All participants learned to tact both the categories (clothes, furniture, and vehicles) and relations (same and different) among nine stimuli. They were subsequently tested on analogical responding during which they were presented with two stimuli belonging to the same or different categories and asked to select the comparison that matched the sample. During the last analogy test, we asked participants to tell us why they selected a certain comparison. Relational tact training produced emergent analogical responding in two participants after exposure to relational listener tests, whereas the other two required direct training on baseline analogy relations. All participants met criterion during derived analogy tests in accordance with symmetry and transitivity. The results of this study suggest that participants passed analogy tests by relationally tacting the sample (i.e., speaker) and reacting to its product by selecting the correct comparison (i.e., listener). This supports and extends previous findings suggesting that children must also engage in behaviors consistent with bidirectional naming to respond accurately to analogy tasks.
The use of preferred target stimuli on the acquisition of a small foreign vocabulary
Ano: 2025
Abstract There is a growing body of research examining the efficacy of teaching a foreign language using procedures that would lead to generative learning. This study assessed the acquisition of foreign tacts and the emergence of bidirectional intraverbal responses (native‐foreign and foreign‐native) as a function of target stimulus preference. Three children learned to tact two sets of pictures (low‐ and high‐preferred targets) presented in an adapted alternating‐treatments design. Emergent intraverbal responses were evaluated across both directions before and after instruction. The results showed that all participants met the mastery and emergence criteria for the high‐preferred stimulus set in fewer trial blocks than for the low‐preferred stimulus set. The high‐preferred set also yielded greater emergence of all intraverbal relations. The results replicated previous findings in that tact instruction was effective in producing emergent intraverbal responding. Moreover, our data suggest that preference for targets is an important variable to ensuring optimal foreign language learning.
Three contextual cues and their influence on naming in children
Ano: 2025
Abstract Children often learn the names of objects incidentally—that is without direct instruction or programmed reinforcement—simply by observing others label novel objects. A number of contextual cues have been deemed important in the development of naming such as orientation toward stimuli, pointing, linguistic prompts (e.g., “This is…”), and contiguous presentations of stimuli and sounds. Despite their significance, there has been almost no systematic investigation of these cues in behavior analysis. The current study preliminarily examines how contextual cues—such as an experimenter's eye gaze, pointing, and use of paralinguistic cues—affect naming responses. In Experiment 1, three typically developing children were administered naming tests with and without these cues using a reversal design. All participants showed improved performance with cues relative to without cues. Experiment 2 extended this by testing three autistic children with all cues, a partial set of cues, or no cues, using a reversal design. Results replicated Experiment 1, also demonstrating that partial cues were effective in facilitating naming. Experiment 3 replicated the results of Experiment 1 with three additional autistic participants during which test trials remained consistent across conditions in a reversal design. Further research on the contextual cues presented during naming experiences is warranted.
Time perception and delay discounting in the FMR1 knockout rat
Ano: 2025
Abstract There is substantial evidence for timing (time perception) abnormalities related to developmental disabilities, particularly autism spectrum disorder. These findings have been reported in humans and nonhuman preclinical models. Our research objective was to extend that work to a genetic knockout (KO) model of fragile X/developmental disability, the FMR1 KO rat. We also sought to test delay discounting in the model and assess potential relations between timing and choice behavior. Consistent with previous human and nonhuman work, we found reduced timing precision in the FMR1 KO rats. We also discovered significantly increased smaller, sooner reward choice in the FMR1 KO rats. Performance on the timing task appeared to be unrelated to performance on the choice task for both model and control rats. These results add to what has become increasingly clear: timing is disrupted in humans diagnosed with developmental disabilities and in nonhuman models designed to model developmental disabilities. Our findings are consistent with those of previous work and the first to our knowledge to show such effects in the FMR1 KO rat. We discuss the potential clinical implications and future directions surrounding potential “timing interventions” for individuals diagnosed with developmental disabilities.
Toward cross‐disciplinary translation of the testing effect: A systematic replication
Ano: 2025
Abstract The testing effect is a well‐established phenomenon in cognitive psychology that refers to enhanced long‐term retention of information due to active recalling through testing. Following a cross‐disciplinary translation of the testing effect into behavioral principles, we systematically replicated the previous findings in a behavior‐analytic context while evaluating the effects of the number of quiz questions on college students' exam performance and other academic behaviors. Students in an upper‐level behavior analysis course participated. Using a within‐subject experimental design in which the participants served as their own control, we compared their exam performance and academic behaviors, such as class participation and out‐of‐class studying, across three conditions: (a) no quizzes, (b) 5‐question quizzes, and (c) 10‐question quizzes. Quizzes improved exam performance and some academic behaviors, successfully replicating the testing effect in a behavior‐analytic context. However, the number of quiz questions did not influence the improvements. Implications of the results and future research are discussed.