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| International Paper Session - Behavioural Discrimination and Choice |
| Tuesday, August 14, 2007 |
| 8:00 AM–9:20 AM |
| L2 Room 2 |
| Area: EAB |
| Chair: Darren R. Christensen (University of Canterbury, New Zealand) |
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| Errorless Intermodal Transfer. |
| Domain: Experimental Analysis |
| JOANA ARANTES (University of Minho), Randolph C. Grace (University of Canterbury) |
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| Abstract: In an extension of errorless learning, a procedure developed by Terrace 1963, pigeons were exposed to an intermodal transfer from a visual discrimination to a sound discrimination. The experiment was divided into four phases. During the first 10 sessions, pigeons were progressively trained in a successive discrimination between red (S+) and green (S-) keys. In the next 5 sessions, a low tone was presented with the S+ and a high tone was presented with the S-, followed by a gradual decrease of the intensities of the red and green lights. Then, pigeons received low-high discrimination training until they satisfied a criterion of four successive sessions without an error. Finally, pigeons were returned to the red-green discrimination. Results were compared with a control group that was trained directly on the low-high tone discrimination. |
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| Relative Time Effect in Signaled and Unsignaled Delays of Reinforcement. |
| Domain: Experimental Analysis |
| JORGE A. RUIZ (Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico), Carlos A. Bruner (Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico) |
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| Abstract: One purpose of this study was to determine if by correlating each component of a multiple schedule with delays-of-reinforcement of either 0, 2, 4, or 8 s, delay-of-reinforcement gradients could be obtained within a session. On each component reinforcement was delivered using a tandem schedule composed by a random interval that added to each nominal delay yielded a constant inter-reinforcement interval (IRI) of either 32 or 128 s. Three pigeons were assigned to each IRI. Response rates in each component of the multiple schedules decreased gradually as the reinforcement delay was lengthened. A second purpose was to determine the point on a continuum defined by the probability of signaling the delay period p(signal) at which frequency-of-reinforcement effects become relative-time effects in a reinforcement-delay procedure. The p(signal) was either 0.00, 0.33, 0,66 or 1.00. When p(signal) was 0.00, global response rates for any given delay were higher with the 32 s than with the 128 s IRI, showing a frequency-of-reinforcement effect. When p(signal) was increased from 0.33 to 1.00 global response rates for any given delay were higher with the 128 s than the 32 s IRI, showing a relative-time effect. |
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