The Impact of the Acquisition of Successive Training Exemplars on Generalization

The present investigation contains an analysis of three generalization effects after the acquisition of one or more training exemplars by students with severe to profound levels of mental retardation. Specifically, generalization across settings, for exemplars with stimulus variations and exemplars with response variations, was assessed following the acquisition of a pre-established sequence of training exemplars. General results indicated that following the acquisition of one or two exemplars from any single group of similarly operated soap dispensers, generalization occurred 100%, 62%, and 0% across settings, for exemplars of varying stimulus features and for exemplars of varying response features, respectively. After one or two exemplars from two groups of similarly operated soap dispensers had been acquired, generalization occurred 100%, 100%, and 50% across settings, for exemplars of varying stimulus features and for exemplars of varying response features, respectively. Implications for selecting training exemplars for students with severe handicaps are discussed.