Some studies, using stimulus matching consistent training, had produced conditional relations that have also yielded equivalence relations. The objective of this experiment was to ascertain whether the same type of discriminations would occur under contextual control. Four university students were submitted to sequential relationships. AB, AC, and AD, interspersed with corresponding tests for symmetry: BA, CA, and DA. Subsequently, AD was tested with the DA test for symmetry. Finally, the equivalence relations BC, CB, BD, DB, CD, and DC were evaluated without the contextual stimuli, whereas the relations DB and DC were tested with contextual stimuli. The participants reached the criterion for accuracy in all training sessions. Three participants presented symmetrical relations without contextual stimuli, while the DA relationship was obtained in the presence of contextual cues. These results replicate and extend previous studies showing that even without differential consequences, it was possible to obtain consistent performance under second-order conditional control.
stimulus equivalence; matching consistency training; contextual control; humans
