Two experiments with pigeons investigated the effects of contingencies between interresponse times (IRTs) and the transitions between the components of 2- and 4-component chained schedules (Experiments 1 and 2, respectively). The probability of component transitions varied directly with the most recent (Lag 0) IRT in some experimental conditions…

Intraverbal behavior is common in conversation and academic and professional settings. Many individuals with disabilities fail to acquire intraverbal repertoires. Some individuals who do acquire intraverbal behavior fail to acquire responses that are functional and complete. Research has examined procedures to establish or increase intraverbal…

Animals must be able to find and evaluate food to ensure survival. The ability to associate a cue with the presence of food is advantageous because it allows an animal to quickly identify a situation associated with a good, bad, or even harmful food. Identifying genes underlying these natural learned responses is essential to understanding this…

In five experiments using rats, we investigated compound context-flavor conditioning. The subjects were allowed to spend time in the target context, where they had access to a flavored solution (either citric acid or saccharine) before receiving an injection of LiCl. Context aversion was then assessed by using a blocking procedure. When the flavor…

Cue competition is one of the most studied phenomena in associative learning. However, a theoretical disagreement has long stood over whether it reflects a learning or performance deficit. The comparator hypothesis, a model of expression of Pavlovian associations, posits that learning is not subject to competition but that performance reflects a…

Second-order conditioning (SOC) is the association of a neutral stimulus with another stimulus that had previously been combined with an unconditioned stimulus (US). We used classical conditioning of the proboscis extension response (PER) in honeybees ("Apis mellifera") with odors (CS) and sugar (US). Previous SOC experiments in bees were…

Memories can have different strengths, largely dependent on the intensity of reinforcers encountered. The relationship between reinforcement and memory strength is evident in asymptotic memory curves, with the level of the asymptote related to the intensity of the reinforcer. Although this is likely a fundamental property of memory formation,…

Chen, Lakshminarayanan, and Santos (2006) claim to show in three choice experiments that monkeys react rationally to price and wealth shocks, but, when faced with gambles, display hallmark, human-like biases that include loss aversion. We present three experiments with monkeys and humans consistent with a reinterpretation of their data that…

More than 400 children with a physical and/or mental challenge visit the Curacao Dolphin Therapy and Research Center (CDTC) for dolphin-assisted therapy every year. Dolphin therapy appears to be the right approach for many children. With the help of these special and very social animals, it is easier to make contact with the children. It motivates…

The effects of prenatal choline availability on Pavlovian conditioning were assessed in adult male rats (3-4 mo). Neither supplementation nor deprivation of prenatal choline affected the acquisition and extinction of simple Pavlovian conditioned excitation, or the acquisition and retardation of conditioned inhibition. However, prenatal choline…

This article presents principles and basic steps for practitioners to complete a functional analysis of client behavior. The emphasis is on application of functional analysis to adult mental health clients. The article includes a detailed flow chart containing all major functional diagnoses and behavioral interventions, with functional assessment…

CB[subscript 1] receptor-compromised animals show profound deficits in extinguishing learned behavior from aversive conditioning tasks, but display normal extinction learning in appetitive operant tasks. However, it is difficult to discern whether the differential involvement of the endogenous cannabinoid system on extinction results from the…

One hundred twenty-eight preschool boys were subjects in a 4x2x2 factorial design to investigate the change in reinforcer efficacy as a function of prior stimulus exposure. The factors were: (1) amount of repetition, 5, 25, 45, or 65; (2) reinforcer, good or bell; and (3) satiator, good or bell. Two additional groups were run as control groups to…

THE ACHIEVEMENT OF EXTREMELY LOW AIR-CONDITIONING NOISE LEVELS REQUIRED FOR MODERN AUDITORIUMS ARE THE RESULT OF CAREFUL PLANNING AND THOROUGH DETAILING. PROBLEMS FACED AND TECHNIQUES USED IN ARRIVING AT LEVELS AS LOW AS NC-15 FOR A SINGLE SYSTEM SERVING A HALL ARE DESCRIBED. SIX CASE HISTORIES ARE EXAMINED AND THE FOLLOWING OBSERVATIONS ARE…

Numerous decisions must be made in the design of computer air conditioning, each determined by a combination of economics, physical, and esthetic characteristics, and computer requirements. Several computer air conditioning systems are analyzed--(1) underfloor supply and overhead return, (2) underfloor plenum and overhead supply with computer unit…