Training and Testing Parameters in Formation of Stimulus Equivalence: Methodological Issues

Research on stimulus equivalence has been prominent for more than 40 years in behavior analysis. The present article will focus on issues related to methodological considerations in stimulus equivalence research. An introduction to stimulus equivalence is provided, followed by a discussion of parameters in training conditional discriminations and testing for the emergence of equivalence classes. Some issues related to different training structures, the use of instructions, simultaneous versus delayed matching to sample, the role of familiar stimuli, response requirements for the sample stimulus, and criteria for (a) defining responding in accordance with equivalence and (b) establishing conditional discrimination are discussed in more detail.