Verbal conditioning of two response classes: Some methodological considerations.

The capacity to condition verbalizations of an interviewee was seen to be related to S's awareness of what was going on but independent of such variables as the age, sex, vocabulary level, (Taylor) anxiety level, and word rate of Ss. Specific content could be successfully conditioned, particularly those words which related to people; such words as plural nouns were unaffected by the reinforcement procedures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attitudes established by classical conditioning.

"2 experiments were conducted to test the hypothesis that attitude responses elicited by a word can be conditioned to a contiguously presented socially significant verbal stimulus… . In Experiment I, one national name was paired with positive evaluative meaning and another was paired with negative evaluative meaning. In Experiment II, familiar masculine names were used. In each experiment there was significant evidence that meaning responses had been conditioned to the names without Ss' awareness." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Recherches sur la morphologie lexicale: Les transformations relatives au nombre.

Studied inflections relative to the number of common nouns in 2 recognition experiments based on models of morphological patterning. In Exp I the 3 processes of pluralization in French were employed in a list of 108 nouns. Ss were asked to recognize and recall singular and plural words on the basis of the phonetic-lexical endings. In Exp II the same nouns, number markers, and combinations were used with Ss being asked if they were the same, another form of the same word, or an entirely different word. Results were assessed by age and school level variables. It is concluded that short-term recall uses episodic memory function based on perception of characteristics, such as graphic or phonetic, of words presented, while number processing occurs at different processing levels. (English abstract) (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Verbal conditionability and Wechsler Picture Arrangement scores.

Compared performance for high and low scorers on Wechsler's Picture Arrangement (PA) subtest with 115 undergraduates on Greenspoon's classic plural nouns verbal conditioning task. According to clinical hypotheses, high PA Ss are supposedly more sensitive to subtle social cues and therefore should emit more plural nouns in this situation than low PA Ss. Results supported this hypothesis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Young children extend novel words at the basic level: Evidence for the principle of categorical scope.

If young children approached the task of word learning with a specific hypothesis about the meaning of novel count nouns, they could make the problem of word learning more tractable. Six experiments were conducted to test children's hypotheses about how labels map to object categories. Findings indicated that (a) 3- and 4-year-olds function with an antithematic bias; (b) children do not reliably extend novel nouns to superordinate exemplars when perceptual similarity is controlled until approximately age 7; and (c) children expect novel nouns to label taxonomic categories at the basic level, even in the presence of a perceptually compelling distractor. Results are interpreted as supporting the principle of categorical scope (R. M. Golinkoff, C. B. Mervis, & K. Hirsh-Pasek; see record 1994-40565-001). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Determiner selection in noun phrase production.

In 3 experiments, native speakers of German named pictures of 1 or 2 objects by producing singular or plural noun phrases consisting of a definite gender-marked determiner and a noun. When singular and plural determiners differed (masculine and neuter gender), naming latencies were longer for plural utterances than for singular utterances. By contrast, when singular and plural determiners were identical (feminine gender), no such effect was obtained. When participants produced bare nouns, the Gender x Number interaction disappeared. This pattern indicates that during the production of plural definite-determiner noun phrases, singular and plural determiners compete for selection. The resulting constraints on number and gender processing in noun phrase production are discussed in the framework of models of language production. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The restricting effects of awareness: A paradox and explanation.

Ss were shown tachistoscopically-presented word stimuli to test the distinction between the perceptual processes of registration (what could be called physiological or sensory threshold) and awareness (or the cognitive threshold). The presentation consisted of a stimulus word followed by series of words associated to the stimulus word either in terms of meaning or structural resemblance. Recall of words presented subliminally or supraliminally was facilitated with degree of awareness of actual stimulus word; with greater awareness of the word, associational recall was for words that structurally resembled S word; without awareness, recall was determined by associative meaning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of context on the immediate interpretation of unambiguous nouns.

Effects of prior sentential context on the interpretation of unambiguous nouns were investigated in 2 cross-modal priming experiments. Exp 1 showed that a prior priming context affects word interpretation during lexical access by facilitating the recovery of contextually relevant aspects of meaning and inhibiting the recovery of irrelevant aspects. Exp 2 showed that lexical decision on a visual word related to an aspect of meaning of an unambiguous noun is facilitated only by a sentential context containing the noun and priming that aspect. Such facilitation occurs neither when the unambiguous noun is replaced by a substitute noun in the same sentential context, nor when the unambiguous noun occurs in a sentence priming an aspect of its meaning unrelated to the visual word. Furthermore, neither of these 2 conditions produced effects on lexical decision reliably different either from each other or from a sentential context completely unrelated to the visual word. Findings argue against the context-independent model of lexical access and support the hypothesis that lexical access may be affected by prior sentential context. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Acquisition of Differential Delay Eyeblink Classical Conditioning Is Independent of Awareness.

There has been debate about whether differential delay eyeblink conditioning can be acquired without awareness of the stimulus contingencies. In 4 experiments, the authors reexamined this question. Older participants were tested with a tone and white noise (Experiment 1) or with 2 tones (Experiment 2). In addition, younger participants were tested with 2 tones (Experiment 3) or with 2 tones plus the parameters from an earlier study that had reported a relationship between conditioning and awareness (Experiment 4). Participants who were designated aware of the stimulus contingencies and participants who were designated unaware exhibited equivalent levels of differential eyeblink conditioning. Awareness of stimulus contingencies is not required for differential delay eyeblink conditioning when simple conditioned stimuli are used. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interaction of set and awareness as determinants of response to verbal conditioning.

The utility of an operant conditioning model to psychotherapy was evaluated by studying the definition of the situation given S and S's focus on E's behavior. Instructions induced either a positive or negative set, identifying a story telling task as a test of empathy or personal problems. Awareness was induced in ? of the Ss by calling attention to E's reinforcement "mm-hmm." 12 undergradate students served as Ss in each of the 4 experimental groups. Positive set-Aware Ss increased use of emotional words, while Negative set-Aware Ss decreased use of emotional words. The results were interpreted as evidence that awareness can either facilitate or inhibit conditioning, depending upon S's set. (26 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

I Like Myself but I Don't Know Why: Enhancing Implicit Self-Esteem by Subliminal Evaluative Conditioning.

On the basis of a conceptualization of implicit self-esteem as the implicit attitude toward the self, it was predicted that implicit self-esteem could be enhanced by subliminal evaluative conditioning. In 5 experiments, participants were repeatedly presented with trials in which the word I was paired with positive trait terms. Relative to control conditions, this procedure enhanced implicit self-esteem. The effects generalized across 3 measures of implicit self-esteem (Experiments 1-3). Furthermore, evaluative conditioning enhanced implicit self-esteem among people with low-temporal implicit self-esteem and among people with high-temporal implicit self-esteem (Experiment 4). In addition, it was shown that conditioning enhanced self-esteem to such an extent that it made participants insensitive to negative intelligence feedback (Experiments 5a and 5b). Various implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Autonomic and eyeblink conditioning are closely related to contingency awareness: Reply to Wiens and ?hman (2002) and Manns et al (2002).

S. Wiens and A. Ohman (see record 2002-00340-002) disputed the conclusion that Pavlovian conditioning is strongly related to contingency awareness (P. F. Lovibond & D. R. Shanks, see record 2002-00340-001) on the basis that an inappropriate definition of awareness was used. J. R. Manns, R. E. Clark, and L. R. Squire (see record 2002-00340-003) contended that delay eyeblink conditioning is independent of awareness. The authors of the present article consider these arguments, highlight several problems in the new studies described by the commentators, and conclude that there is still little evidence for unconscious conditioning in either subliminal autonomic conditioning or eyeblink conditioning. The most parsimonious account of existing data is that a single learning process gives rise to both awareness and conditioned responding. Further progress in evaluating the possibility of unconscious conditioning would be facilitated by the development of more completely specified and testable dual-process models. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Unawareness is more than a chance event: Comment on Lovibond and Shanks (2002).

P. F. Lovibond and D. R. Shanks (see record 2002-00340-001) suggested that expectancy of the unconditional stimulus and emotional ratings are valid indexes of awareness in Pavlovian conditioning and that participants are aware if they can discriminate the conditional stimuli. However, research suggests that processes that are irrelevant to awareness affect these measures. Further, as awareness refers to conscious experience, a valid measure needs to index subjective state rather than discrimination ability. In support research using subjective measures has demonstrated qualitatively different effects depending on whether participants reported being aware or unaware of the stimuli. In this research, participants reported being unaware of the stimuli even though they were clearly able to discriminate the stimuli. These findings question the validity of Lovibond and Shanks' concept of awareness and their suggestion of a close association between conditioning and awareness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of a positive social reward upon a verbal avoidance response.

In investigating the effect of reward upon the acquisition and extinction of avoidance response, a word association task was presented to 90 Ss for 8 conditioning and 12 extinction trials. During conditioning, associations to preselected words were punished on Trial 1 and whenever S repeated them. There were 3 acquisition groups: 1 received the above training, the 2nd also received reward for substitute associations, and the 3rd obtained reward during the 2nd ? of acquisition only. Each acquisiton group was divided into 2 extinction subgroups: 1 received neither reward nor punishment while the 2nd was rewarded for avoiding. Results indicated that reward hastened acquisition and delayed extinction of avoidance responses, thus confirming hypotheses regarding the concept of secondary gain. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Standard delay eyeblink classical conditioning is independent of awareness.

P. F. Lovibond and D. R. Shanks (see record 2002-00340-001) suggested that all forms of classical conditioning depend on awareness of the stimulus contingencies. This article considers the available data for eyeblink classical conditioning, including data from 2 studies (R. E. Clark, J. R. Manns, & L. R. Squire, 2001; J. R. Manns, R. E. Clark, & L. R. Squire, 2001) that were completed too recently to have been considered in their review. In addition, in response to questions raised by P. F. Lovibond and D. R. Shanks, 2 new analyses of data are presented from studies published previously. The available data from humans and experimental animals provide strong evidence that delay eyeblink classical conditioning (but not trace eyeblink classical conditioning) can be acquired and retained independently of the forebrain and independently of awareness. This conclusion applies to standard conditioning paradigms; for example, to single-cue delay conditioning when a tone is used as the conditioned stimulus (CS) and to differential delay conditioning when the positive and negative conditioned stimuli (CS+ and CS-) are a tone and white noise. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Instructions as discriminative stimuli in verbal conditioning and awareness.

This investigation was to study the effects of preconditioning instructions and type of reinforcer on level of awareness and extent of conditioning. Prior to a conditioning task, Ss in different experimental groups were given varying degrees of information concerning the nature of the reinforcement and the reinforcement contingency. In some groups of Ss the reinforcement consisted of E saying "good" while in other experimental groups the Ss received points as reinforcement. The results indicated that the degree of conditioning and level of awareness were partially dependent upon the amount of information in the preconditioning instruction. However, in experimental groups where only partial information was given, Ss who received points conditioned better than Ss who received "good" even though there were no differences in the level of awareness. The nature of the response class was also found to be an important variable that affected the level of conditioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluative conditioning and the awareness issue: Assessing contingency awareness with the Four-Picture Recognition Test.

An experiment is described that tested the moderating influence of contingency awareness on evaluative conditioning. After participants were conditioned within the picture-picture paradigm, contingency awareness was assessed by means of a recognition test (i.e., the 4-picture recognition test). Results indicate an inverse relationship between the conditioned affective reaction and contingency awareness: Only participants classified as unaware in the recognition test showed significant effects of evaluative learning. A closer inspection indicates that aware individuals stored not only the valence but also the nominal stimulus in mind. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Under what conditions can human affective conditioning occur without contingency awareness? Test of the evaluative conditioning paradigm.

The role of conscious cognitive processes in human affective conditioning remains controversial, with several theories arguing that such conditioning can occur without awareness of the conditioned stimulus (CS)-unconditioned stimulus (UCS) contingency. One specific type of affective conditioning in which unaware conditioning is said to occur is "evaluative conditioning." The present experiment tested the role of contingency awareness by embedding an evaluative conditioning paradigm in a distracting masking task while obtaining, in addition to subjective ratings of affect, both psychophysiological (skin conductance and startle eyeblink) and indirect behavioral (affective priming) measures of conditioning, along with a trial-by-trial measure of awareness from 55 college student participants. Aware participants showed conditioning with all of the measures; unaware participants failed to show conditioning with all measures. The behavioral, neurophysiological, and therapeutic implications of these findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conditioning of verbalization: A review.

Recent research in the conditioning of verbal behavior offers support to a learning-theory interpretation of changes that may occur in psychotherapy. Manipulation of awareness states, use of verbal conditioning as an independent variable, and effect of the reinforcement history of S in verbal conditioning experiments are being explored in relevance to controlled and measurable modification of verbal behavior. Evidence is accumulating that the generalization of an experimentally acquired verbal response is a function of the common cue-producing properties of the several classes of which it may be a member. (2-p. ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)