Association for Behavior Analysis International

The presentation will tell a research story about the search for verbal mediation in delayed matching-to-sample arrangements and emergent relations. By telling the story, a series of experiments will be presented. Terms as simultaneous and delayed matching-to-sample (DMTS) and emergent relations will be discussed. Research using DMTS procedures has shown that equivalence class formation has increased as a function of increasing delays between sample and comparison. For example, a 9-s delay enhanced equivalence class formation more than a 0-s delay. So, the question "why" has been asked. Thus, in research on DMTS, it has been argued that the naming the stimuli in the delay might bridge the gap between the sample offset and the comparison presentation. Therefore, we have tried to influence the matching performance by introducing a variety of distracting tasks in the delay between the sample offset and the comparison onset. The main findings from such experiments have shown how the tasks presented in the delay influenced the responding in accordance with stimulus equivalence. Finally, experiments employing "silent dog" and talk-aloud procedures have accumulated valuable information of what participants are talking about in the presence of the sample, in the delay, and when the comparisons are presented.

Board certified behavior analysts; licensed psychologists; graduate students.