A mediational theory of equivalence relations and transformation of function.

In this article, we describe a mediational theory of emergent or derived relations resulting from matching-to-sample procedures that produce equivalence and transformation of function. According to a mediational theory, behaviors that occur at the time of reinforcement mediate subsequent behavioral relations referred to as "derived" or "emergent." Such relations have been documented for decades in studies using mostly matching-to-sample procedures with humans and nonhumans.

Contrasting Accounts of Early Speech Perception and Production.

Language researchers have historically either dismissed or ignored completely behavioral accounts of language acquisition while at the same time acknowledging the important role of experience in language learning. Many language researchers have also moved away from theories based on an innate generative universal grammar and promoted experience-dependent and usage-based theories of language. These theories suggest that hearing and using language in its context is critical for learning language.

Is ACTraining Behavior Analytic? A Review of Tarbox et al. (2020).

In an effort to determine if acceptance and commitment training (ACTraining) can be called behavior analytic, Tarbox et al. (2020) evaluated whether (1) ACTraining methods can be linked to behavior analytic principles, (2) they align with the seven dimensions of applied behavior analysis described by Baer et al. (1968, 1987), and (3) ACTraining relates to items on the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB) task list.

Jack Michael, Behavior Analyst.

Jack Michael was the quintessential behavior analyst. Despite his reputation as a theoretician and expert in verbal behavior and on Skinner's book , Jack was actually an applied behavior analyst in the literal sense before anyone had coined the term. Prior to becoming one of Jack's doctoral students at Western Michigan University, I was a behavior-analytic neophyte.

Standing on the Shoulders of a Giant: Remembrances of Jack Michael, Part 2.

In Part 1 of these remembrances of Jack Michael, we briefly described Jack's history in terms of how he became a behavior analyst (Sundberg & Schlinger, 2021). We pointed out that he was one of the first to apply the principles of behavior analysis discovered in the experimental laboratory to the area of rehabilitation. In so doing, Jack was perhaps the first applied behavior analyst.

Standing on the Shoulders of a Giant: Remembrances of Jack Michael, Part 1.

In 1959, Jack Michael and his PhD student Ted Ayllon published "The Psychiatric Nurse as a Behavioral Engineer" (Ayllon & Michael, 1959). That study was Ayllon's doctoral dissertation and was the first empirical demonstration of how the principles of behavior (e.g.

Use of Repeated Within-Subject Measures to Assess Infants' Preference for Similar Others.

Research employing single-choice paradigms in which an infant is asked to make a single choice between two puppets suggest that infants show a preference for prosocial others and those who are similar to themselves. However, the extent to which infants' preference for similar others is stable is unknown, as are other factors within the paradigm that may influence infants' choices. The purpose of this study (two experiments, = 44 infants, aged 8-15 months) was to replicate and extend previous work by including (1) within-subject repeated measures and (2) an experimental manipulation of a plausible demand characteristic.

Reflections on at 60.

In the present essay, commemorating the 60th anniversary of the publication of B. F. Skinner's , I stand by and defend the judgment I expressed in my article "The Long Goodbye: Why B.

Publishing Outside the Box: Unforeseen Dividends of Talking to Strangers.

This article describes publishing outside behavior analysis, letters to editors, and columns, as well as communicating outside the box with editors, authors, and journalists. Publishing can occur in a wide range of journals (e.g.

Training Graduate Students to Effectively Disseminate Behavior Analysis and to Counter Misrepresentations.

Training graduate students to promote behavior analysis and counter misconceptions requires that graduate programs in behavior analysis contain a healthy dose of experimental analysis of behavior so that students understand the experimental foundations of their discipline. Moreover, graduate students should be required to study the theoretical and philosophical foundations of the field because most of the misconceptions of behavior analysis are conceptual and philosophical in nature. Programs should also teach graduate ABA students to think critically about the concepts and principles of behavior analysis in order to prepare them to defend it against misunderstandings and to be more effective practitioners.

On the origin and functions of the term functional analysis.

In this essay, we note that although Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, and Richman (1982) established the standard framework for conducting functional analyses of problem behavior, the term functional analysis was probably first used in behavior analysis by B. F. Skinner in 1948.

A Functional Analysis of Psychological Terms Redux.

In his seminal paper, "An Operational Analysis of Psychological Terms," Skinner (1945) offered the revolutionary suggestion that, rather than endlessly debating the meanings of psychological terms, psychologists should analyze the variables that control their occurrence as verbal behavior. Skinner's suggestion reflected the essence of his 1957 book, , wherein he argued that the behaviors of which language is composed (i.e.

Increased variability in tacting under a lag 3 schedule of reinforcement.

Research has shown that variability may be an operant dimension of behavior. One method of reinforcing response variability is to use a lag schedule of reinforcement (Page & Neuringer, 1985). Several studies have shown that a Lag 1 schedule is effective in increasing variable responding with human participants (e.

Using a lag schedule to increase variability of verbal responding in an individual with autism.

Research has shown that reinforcing novel behaviors can increase the number of different ways that an individual behaves (Goetz & Baer, 1973; Pryor, Haag, & O'Reilly, 1969). However, it was not until more recently that researchers began to consider variability to be a reinforceable operant in and of itself (Neuringer, 2002). More specifically, Neuringer suggested that variability can be taught using a Lag x schedule of reinforcement, in which x refers to the number of previous responses from which the current response must differ in order for reinforcement to occur (Page & Neuringer, 1985).

The effect of joint control training on the acquisition and durability of a sequencing task.

Gutierrez (2006) experimentally demonstrated the effects of joint control and particularly the role of response mediation in the sequencing behavior of adults using an unfamiliar language. The purpose of the current study was to replicate and extend the procedures used by Gutierrez by comparing the effects of joint control training with the effects of a prompt-and-fade procedure on the acquisition of a sequencing task. The effects of each procedure on delayed sequencing behavior were also tested.