Stimulus-response binding and retrieval (SRBR) is a fundamental mechanism driving behavior automatization. In five experiments, we investigated the modulatory role of affective consequences (AC) on SRBR effects to test whether binding/retrieval can explain instrumental learning (i.e., the "law of effect"). SRBR effects were assessed in a…

In topography-based verbal behavior, different antecedent stimuli control different topographies of responding, whereas in selection-based verbal behavior, different antecedent stimuli control the selection of visually distinct stimuli from an array of options. In this article, we point out three variable characteristics of selection-based…

We assessed whether novel praise statements could be used to (a) maintain and increase responses with existing reinforcement histories and (b) teach a previously untaught response among children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder across two experiments. During response-stimulus pairing, two responses resulted in preferred edibles but only one…

Six experiments were conducted with graduate students to assess resurgence of compound (i.e., multi-step) academic responding under free operant procedures. Participants learned two different interobserver agreement (IOA) methods -- compound behaviors -- through instructional phases before beginning the experimental phases. Each experiment…

Math anxiety impedes people from working to their fullest potential (Hyman et al., 2015; Retanel et al., 2021) and impacts people of all ages, including both children and adults (Oh et al., 2022; SzczygieL, 2020). The influence parents' math anxiety has on children is also impactful on the children's own development of math anxiety or negative…

The autoclitic is among the least studied and most complex verbal operant named and described by Skinner. The descriptive autoclitic is one subtype, which among other functions can describe the strength of the response. If the clarity of the stimulus is one source of response strength for tacts, manipulating stimulus clarity should evoke different…

The inclusion of private events in the philosophy of our science is integral to avoid dualism and remain objective rather than making assumptions about an unseen mind. However, the inclusion of behaviors and stimuli which cannot be observed in an analysis poses obvious issues. One established method of studying covert behavior is to examine tasks…

In the present study, we used a modeling approach for measuring task conflict in task switching, assessing the probability of selecting the correct task via multinomial processing tree (MPT) modeling. With this method, task conflict and response conflict can be independently assessed as the probability of selecting the correct task and the…

The current study combined equivalence-based instruction and instructive feedback (IF) with two groups of children with autism spectrum disorder. For group 1, three sets of three targets were tested, and for group 2, two sets of three targets were tested. For each target stimulus, the following verbal operants were evaluated: (1) tact name, (2)…

Early tobacco smoke exposure (TSE) in utero and/or during the first years after birth poses threats to the development of child executive functioning and self-regulation skills, including inhibitory control. Efforts are still needed to examine under what conditions such effects may occur and thus identify modifiable intervention targets. In…

Given the inclusion of sensory reactivity as a diagnostic criterion for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and the theorized etiological role of sensory reactivity in the development of autism, adequate sensory measures of sensory reactivity in autism, including measures extending to use in infancy, are needed. Adequate sensory measurement relies on…

Sensory Over-Responsivity (SOR) is an increasingly recognized challenge among children with neurodevelopmental concerns (NDC). To investigate, we characterized the incidence of auditory and tactile over-responsivity (AOR, TOR) among 82 children with NDC. We found that 70% of caregivers reported concern for their child's sensory reactions. Direct…

This study reports the results of 4 experiments that addressed whether the domains of deictic time and number exert a cross-domain link. Such a link would be consistent with A Theory of Magnitude (i.e., ATOM). In contrast, no link between the two domains would support the conceptual metaphor theory (CMT), which assumes that each domain is only…

Differential observing responses (DORs) are additional response requirements used to promote orientation to a stimulus in a discrimination task. Farber and Dickson (2023) recently provided a DOR taxonomy, and these authors reported that no prior research has compared the effects of distinct DOR requirements. We compared the effects of two DOR…

Children are unique humans and experience varied development even though they are of the same gene or the same sex but grow and develop according to their respective characteristics. Of course, this condition also demands adjustments in providing appropriate and varied stimuli and responses. This study aims to observe the growth and development of…