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The current study replicated and extended previous research on the use of a rapid assessment to identify effective arm‐splint rigidity with 2 participants who had been diagnosed with autism and who engaged in self‐injurious behavior (SIB). We varied rigidity levels within a multielement design across several adaptive tasks and identified the most effective rigidity level in terms of reductions in SIB and levels of compliance.

A multiple baseline design across participants was used to demonstrate the effects of a script‐training procedure on the peer‐to‐peer communication of 3 children with autism spectrum disorder during group play with peers. Both scripted and unscripted initiations as well as responses to peers increased for all 3 participants. Stimulus generalization across novel toys, settings, and peers was observed. Novel unscripted initiations, responses, and appropriate changes in topics during peer‐to‐peer exchanges were analyzed by considering the cumulative frequency of these behaviors across phases of the study. Treatment gains were maintained during 4‐week follow‐up sessions. Results are discussed in terms of recommendations for practitioners, response variability, and potential future avenues of research.

The present study used a single‐subject design to evaluate the effects of select or reject control on equivalence class formation and transfer of function. Adults were exposed to a matching‐to‐sample task with observing requirements (MTS‐OR) in order to bias the establishment of sample/S+ (select) or sample/S‐ (reject) relations. In Experiment 1, four sets of baseline conditional relations were taught—two under reject control (A1B2C1, A2B1C2) and two under select control (D1E1F1, D2E2F2). Participants were tested for transitivity, symmetry, equivalence and reflexivity. They also learned a simple discrimination involving one of the stimuli from the equivalence classes and were tested for the transfer of the discriminative function. In general, participants performed with high accuracy on all equivalence‐related probes as well as the transfer of function probes under select control. Under reject control, participants had high scores only on the symmetry test; transfer of function was attributed to stimuli programmed as S‐. In Experiment 2, the equivalence class under reject control was expanded to four members (A1B2C1D2; A2B1C2D1). Participants had high scores only on symmetry and on transitivity and equivalence tests involving two nodes. Transfer of function was extended to the programmed S‐ added to each class. Results from both experiments suggest that select and reject controls might differently affect the formation of equivalence classes and the transfer of stimulus functions.

Se realiza un análisis teórico del concepto de desligamiento funcional en teoría de la conducta (Ribes & López, 1985). Se revisan algunos antecedentes teóricos del concepto y se examinan las propiedades lógicas del concepto en relación con las distintas causas aristotélicas. Se señala la importancia de la causa eficiente en su relación con la actualización de la potencia, como organización funcional de un organismo. Se hace énfasis en ubicar, desde la perspectiva de una teoría de campo, en dónde reside la potencia, qué es lo que se actualiza y en qué consiste cada contingencia de función actualizada. Se propone también cómo medir las diversas formas de causalidad aristotélica en el modelo de campo (mediación, arquitectura de las relaciones de contingencia, desligamiento funcional y ajuste funcional) como variables molares.

The search for symmetry in nonhuman subjects has been successful in recent studies in pigeons (e.g., Urcuioli, 2008). The key to these successes has been the use of successive discrimination procedures and combined training on identity, as well as arbitrary, baseline relations. The present study was an effort to extend the findings and theoretical analysis developed by Urcuioli and his colleagues to rats using olfactory rather than visual stimuli. Experiment 1 was a systematic replication of Urcuioli's (2008) demonstration of symmetry in pigeons. Rats were exposed to unreinforced symmetry probes following training with two arbitrary and four identity conditional discriminations. Response rates on symmetry probe trials were low and provided little evidence for emergent symmetry in any of the seven rats tested. In Experiment 2, a separate group of six rats was trained on four identity relations and was then exposed to probe trials with four novel odor stimuli. Response rates were high on identity probe trials, and low on nonmatching probe trials. The similar patterns of responding on baseline and probe trials that were shown by most rats provided a demonstration of generalized identity matching. These findings suggest that the development of stimulus control topographies in rats with olfactory stimuli may differ from those that emerge in pigeons with visual stimuli. Urcuioli's (2008) theory has been highly successful in predicting conditions necessary for stimulus class formation in pigeons, but may not be sufficient to fully understand determinants of emergent behaviors in other nonhuman species.

Una teoría de la conducta humana requiere ser parte de una teoría de la conducta que incluya la conducta de organismos en otros phyla, no solamente los animales. El comportamiento humano es una síntesis de tres procesos emergentes en la historia de la vida en el planeta: a) la emergencia del tejido nervioso, b) la emergencia del lenguaje y c) simultáneamente el surgimiento de las primeras formas de organización social y la división del trabajo. El lenguaje, en el caso de los seres humanos, ha permitido el surgimiento de las funciones substitutivas de contingencias, como emergentes psicológicos exclusivos. Se examina el papel crucial del lenguaje y la atribución de un nombre en el proceso de identidad social como individuo y como persona.

Undergraduates in six groups of 10 attempted to form three 3‐node 5‐member equivalence classes (A→B→C→D→E) under the simultaneous protocol. In five of six groups, all stimuli were abstract shapes; in the PIC group, C stimuli were pictures with the remainder being abstract shapes. Before class formation, participants in the Identity‐S and Identity‐D groups were given preliminary training to form identity conditional discriminations with the C stimuli using simultaneous and 6 s delayed matching‐to‐sample procedures, respectively. In the Arbitrary‐S and Arbitrary‐D groups, before class formation, arbitrary conditional discriminations were formed between C and X stimuli using simultaneous and 6 s delayed matching‐to‐sample procedures, respectively. With no preliminary training, classes in the PIC and ABS groups were formed by 80% and 0% of participants, respectively. After preliminary training, class formation (yield) increased with delay, regardless of relational type. For each of the two delays, yield was slightly greater after forming arbitrary‐ instead of identity‐relations. Yield was greatest, however, when a class contained a meaningful stimulus (PIC). During failed class formation, probes produced experimenter‐defined relations, participant‐defined relations, and unsystematic responding; delay, but not the relation type in preliminary training influenced relational and indeterminate responding. These results suggest how meaningful stimuli enhance equivalence class formation.

This study evaluated the effects of massed and distributed practice on the acquisition of tacts and textual behavior in typically developing children. We compared the effects of massed practice (i.e., consolidating all practice opportunities during the week into a single session) and distributed practice (i.e., distributing all practice opportunities across 4 sessions during the week) on the acquisition of textual behavior in English, tacting pictures of common nouns in Spanish, and textual behavior in Spanish using an adapted alternating treatments design embedded within a multiple probe design. We also examined correct responding during probes that (a) excluded prompts and reinforcement and (b) occurred 48 hr after training each week. The results indicated that distributed practice was the more efficient training format. Maintenance data collected up to 4 weeks after training also indicated that the participants consistently displayed higher levels of correct responding to targets that had been trained in distributed format. We discuss implications for practice and potential areas for future research.

Manding allows individuals to access reinforcers in their environment. Caregivers may not implement mand‐training programs as designed, which could result in decreased mand proficiency. This study evaluated the effects of delivery of the incorrect item (Experiment 1) and response‐independent item delivery (Experiment 2) across 4 levels of treatment integrity (0%, 40%, 70%, and 100%) on mand acquisition with individuals with developmental disabilities. During Experiment 1, 2 of the 3 participants acquired the mand fastest during 100% integrity. Delivery of the incorrect item was detrimental to acquisition, but effects were idiosyncratic. During Experiment 2, all participants acquired the mand trained with 100% integrity fastest, followed by the mand trained with 70% integrity. None of the participants acquired the mands trained with 40% and 0% integrity, suggesting that delivery of the item independent of responding was detrimental to acquisition. For mand training to be most effective, caregivers must implement mand training with high levels of integrity.