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ERIC Number: EJ758912
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2007
Pages: 27
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0021-8855
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Arbitrarily Applicable Comparative Relations: Experimental Evidence for a Relational Operant
Berens, Nicholas M.; Hayes, Steven C.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, v40 n1 p45-71 Spr 2007
Arbitrarily applicable derived relational responding has been argued by relational frame theorists to be a form of operant behavior. The present study examined this idea with 4 female participants, ages 4 to 5 years old, who could not perform a series of problem-solving tasks involving arbitrary more than and less than relations. In a combined multiple baseline (across responses and participants) and multiple probe design (with trained and untrained stimuli), it was shown that reinforced multiple-exemplar training facilitated the development of arbitrary comparative relations, and that these skills generalized not just across stimuli but also across trial types. The sequence of training identified potential prerequisites in the development of comparative relations (e.g., nonarbitrary comparative relations). Taken as a whole, the present data, along with previous work by others in this area, suggest that relating arbitrary events comparatively is an operant. The implications of this conclusion for the analysis of complex behavior are discussed.
Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior. Available from: Department of Applied Behavioral Science. Kansas University, 1000 Sunnyside Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66045-2133. Tel: 785-841-4425; Fax: 785-841-4425; e-mail: behavior@mail.ku.edu; Web site: http://seab.envmed.rochester.edu/jaba/index.html
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A