Individuals with autism often have deficient intraverbal repertoires. Previous research has found success in using a blocked trials procedure to facilitate discrimination training. A previous study (unpublished) from our laboratory extended this procedure to intraverbal training. The current study continued this line of research by exploring the outcomes of probing the criterion performance more frequently. Three children with autism, ages 7-13, participated. Eight question pairs were taught. One question was presented repeatedly until a specified number of consecutive correct responses occurred, then the other question was presented. Contingent on specific mastery criteria, the trial blocks were faded into smaller blocks until the questions were presented in quasi-random order. Between each step, a criterion probe was conducted to determine if further steps were necessary. The procedure has been successful for two of the three participants. Criterion probe performance showed that not all teaching steps were needed every time. The procedure may have facilitated acquisition over time, because the number of trials to mastery generally decreased over successive targets.

Os índices de evasão e fracasso escolar no ensino fundamental no Brasil, nos dias atuais, ainda são alarmantes. Torna-se importante o planejamento de procedimentos que minimizem as dificuldades envolvidas no aprendizado da leitura e escrita e potencializem a aquisição dessas habilidades. Nessa direção, vários grupos de pesquisadores têm focado seus estudos, através do paradigma de equivalência, visando identificar as variáveis relacionadas com a formação de classes de equivalência e suas relações com a leitura, trazendo nítidas implicações educacionais. Porém, quando a leitura com compreensão é adquirida, não significa necessariamente que o leitor esteja sob controle das unidades verbais menores do que a palavra. O presente estudo teve como objetivo investigar variáveis relevantes no processo da emergência do controle por unidades mínimas e, portanto, da leitura recombinativa, com cinco crianças pré-escolares. Foi utilizado o programa EQUIV, em que foram ensinadas as relações entre palavra ditada e palavra impressa correspondente (AC); em seguida testadas a leitura de novas palavras, formadas pela recombinação das unidades menores presentes nas palavras ensinadas previamente. O programa era constituído de vinte fases, que se dividiam em cinco tipos básicos de procedimentos: Pré-Teste, Pré-Treino, Treinos, Testes e Pós-testes. Os dados demonstraram que três participantes apresentaram desempenhos próximos de 100% nos Testes de Leitura Recombinativa, indicando transferência das funções discriminativas das unidades mínimas das palavras de treino para as novas palavras. Nos pós-testes todos os participantes foram capazes de nomear palavras e sílabas as quais não eram capazes de nomear anteriormente. Nos testes de Equivalência realizados ao final do programa, os mesmos três participantes obtiveram desempenhos próximos de 100%, o que indica leitura com compreensão. Os resultados do presente estudo indicam que a ausência dos treinos das relações entre palavra ditada e figuras (AB) e dos Testes de Equivalência, não impediram a emergência do controle por unidades mínimas, sugerindo um procedimento mais econômico para a obtenção da leitura recombinativa. Portanto, o ganho de se instalar o controle por unidades mínimas mais rapidamente, suscita questões teóricas e sugere pesquisas futuras nessa direção. / The percentage of drop outs in Brazilian primary school is still alarming. It is important, though, to arrange procedures that minimize difficulties in reading and writing and maximize the acquisition of these abilities. In this direction, many groups of researchers have focused in studies in which through equivalence paradigm they identify variables related with the formation of equivalences class and its relations with reading comprehension. But when reading comprehension is acquired, it does not necessarily means that the reader is under the control of minimal verbal units of the word. The present study aimed to investigate the relevant variables in the process of emergence of minimal unit control and recombinative reading, with five preschool children. Using EQUIV software, relations between oral and printed word (AC) were taught; afterwards, textual behavior of novel words were tested, which were composed by minimal units of the words taught previously. The program consisted of twenty experimental phases, divided into four basic types: Pretest, Pretraining, Training and Post- Test. The results showed that three participants presented recombinative reading closer to 100% correct performances, indicating transfer of discriminative functions of the minimal units trained to new words. In Post- Tests, all participants developed repertoire of naming oral words and syllables that werent able to name before. In Equivalence Tests applied in the final phase, the same three participants obtained performance closer to 100%, indicating reading comprehension. The results of the present study point that the absence of training relations between oral word and picture (AB) and Equivalence Tests, didnt inhibit the emergence of control by minimal units, suggesting economy in the procedures of recombinative reading. Hence, the quicker installment of minimal verbal units control than previous studies generates theoretical questions and suggests future researches in this direction.

O objetivo do presente estudo foi verificar variáveis relevantes no ensino de leitura via o paradigma de equivalência, sobretudo na emergência do controle por unidades menores e leitura recombinativa. Por meio do software EQUIV foram ensinadas relações entre a palavra ditada e impressa (AC) e entre a palavra ditada e a respectiva figura (AB); em seguida eram testadas (1) as relações de equivalência entre figura-palavra impressa (BC) e palavra impressa-figura (CB), e (2) a leitura de novas palavras, formadas pela recombinação das unidades menores presentes nas palavras ensinadas previamente. A variável manipulada na presente pesquisa foi a solicitação para emissão de um comportamento textual nos treinos com tentativas AC. Oito crianças (quatro no grupo controle) participaram do programa, com 21 fases experimentais divididas em quatro tipos básicos: Pré-Teste , Pré-Treino, Treinos e Testes (04 palavras eram ensinadas, 08 ensinadas e testadas e 04 apenas testadas). Depois de aprenderem três conjuntos formados por quatro palavras (compostas por letras e sílabas sistematicamente recombinadas), os participantes mostraram aquisição de leitura com compreensão de palavras e sílabas, recombinação de unidades menores e leitura recombinativa em performances próximas de 100% de acertos. Os Pré e Pós-testes também mostraram que todos os participantes foram capazes de desenvolver o repertório de nomear palavras e sílabas as quais não eram capazes de nomear anteriormente. Entretanto, a comparação entre dois grupos (controle e experimental) sugeriu que a emissão de comportamento textual durante a tarefa não foi uma variável crítica sobre a emergência do controle por unidades menores e leitura recombinativa, já que os resultados foram estatisticamente semelhantes. Conclui-se que, conforme apontam os estudos prévios de Hübner e Hübner e Matos, o número de conjuntos de palavras treinado (o que envolve o treino de múltiplos exemplares) e a forma como as unidades menores que a palavra são recombinadas sistematicamente ao longo do procedimento são as variáveis mais importantes envolvidas na leitura recombinativa e no controle por unidades menores. / The objective of the present study was to verify relevant variables in the teaching of reading through equivalence paradigm, mainly in the emergence of the control by minimal units emergence and recombinative reading. Using the EQUIV software, relations between oral-printed word (AC) and between the oral word-picture were taught (AB). After that, were tested: (1) relations between picture-printed word (BC) and between printed word-picture (CB); and (2) the reading of novel words, which are composed by the minimal units of the words taught previously. The variable manipulated on the present research was a textual behavior request in the AC training trials. Eight children (four on control group) participated in the program, which consists of 21 experimental phases divided in four basic types: pre-test, pre-training, training and tests (04 words were taught, 08 words were taught and tested and 04 words were only tested). After learning three sets of 04 words (composed by letters and syllables systematic recombined), participants showed acquisition of reading comprehension with word and syllable, recombination of minimal units and recombinative reading in closer to 100% correct performances. Pretests and posttests showed that all participants developed the repertoire of oral naming words and syllables that they weren\'t able to name before. Nevertheless, comparison between the two groups suggested that textual behavior request wasn\'t a critical variable over the emergence of control by minimal units and recombinative reading, since both results are statistically similar. It seems to be, according to Hübner and Matos and Hübner previous studies, that the number of word sets trained (which involves multiple exemplars training) and the systematic recombination of minimal units used during procedure are the most important variables involved in recombinative reading and minimal units control.

A one-trial learning color discrimination task was extrapolated from Jarvik's (1953) teaching color discrimination to primates. A yellow-blue discrimination was selected to teach eleven autistic children. As in Jarvik's, SD and SA, reinforcer and punisher, were one and the same. Sugar-flavored water was the S D alum-flavored water, S . The instrumental response of reaching for a colored glass and drinking was established. Then one-trial learning occurred. The learning tests were a block of twenty-five trials for each individual subject on the following day. The second day another block of twenty-five trials was administered to each subject. It was hypothesized that the subjects would function at a ninety per cent criterion level. None of the subjects learned the task.

O efeito do reforçamento é apontado como a principal variável para a formação de discriminações condicionais e de equivalência de estímulos. Pesquisas têm se concentrado em analisar outras variáveis que influenciam a formação de discriminações condicionais e de equivalência de estímulos. Tais estudos sugerem que o comportamento verbal pode facilitar a formação do responder discriminativo e da equivalência de estímulos, porém poucas pesquisas tem se concentrado em investigar o efeito do comportamento verbal autoclítico neste responder. O objetivo da presente pesquisa foi analisar se uma instrução que orientou o participante a emitir uma resposta verbal vocal com autoclítico qualificador de asserção é, entre a apresentação do estímulo modelo e a escolha do estímulo amostra, em uma tarefa de matching to sample produz efeitos na formação de novas classes de equivalência e influencia na quantidade de tentativas necessárias para a formação do responder discriminativo condicional. Foram utilizados vinte participantes adultos divididos em dois grupos, Grupo Controle e Grupo Experimental. Todos os participantes foram submetidos a três etapas de treino e três etapas de testes. Na primeira etapa foram treinadas as relações A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 e testada a formação de classes equivalência entre os estímulos B1C1, B2C2, B3C3; na segunda etapa foram treinadas as relações A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 e testada à formação de classes equivalência entre os estímulos B1C1, B2C2, B3C3; na terceira etapa foram treinadas as relações A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 e testada à formação de classes equivalência entre os estímulos B1C1, B2C2, B3C3. Cada treino foi composto por doze tentativas, tendo como critério de aprendizagem a ocorrência de 100% de respostas corretas. A instrução foi apresentada apenas aos participantes do Grupo Experimental. Os resultados obtidos não apresentam diferenças de desempenho, entre os grupos na média de tentativas necessárias em todas as etapas de treino, entretanto o Grupo Experimental apresenta um desempenho inicial superior ao do Grupo Controle na média de respostas corretas nas Etapas de treino e um desempenho superior do Grupo Experimental na média de respostas corretas durante todas as etapas de teste do experimento. É possível afirmar que o efeito inicial do autoclítico foi de aumentar a precisão das respostas facilitando a aquisição da discriminação condicional e da formação de equivalência de estímulos. Tal precisão produzida pelo autoclítico pode ter auxiliado o participante a emitir um operante verbal intraverbal que descreve as discriminações condicionais ensinadas e testadas no experimento, já que todos os participantes do Grupo Experimental passaram a emitir a resposta verbal vocal este é este, acompanhado da resposta de escolha correta entre os estímulos condicional e discriminativo / The effect of reinforcement is pointed as the main variable for formation of conditional discrimination and stimulus equivalence. Researches have concentrated on analyzing other variables that influence the formation of conditional discrimination and stimulus equivalence. Such studies suggest that verbal behavior can facilitate formation of discriminative responding and stimulus equivalence, however few researches have focused on investigate the effect of autoclitic verbal behavior in this responding. The purpose of the present research was to analyze if an instruction that oriented the participant to emit a vocal verbal response, the autoclitic qualifier is, between the presentation of model stimulus and the choice of the sample stimulus in a task of match to sample, produces effects in formation of new equivalence classes and if it influences over the quantity of trials required to meet conditional discriminative responding. Twenty participants were dived in two groups, Control Group and Experimental Group. All the participants were submitted to three stages of training and three stages of tests. During the first stage of training the relations A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 were trained and were tested the formation of equivalence classes between stimulus B1C1, B2C2, B3C3; on the second stage of training the relations A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 and was tested the formation of equivalence classes between stimulus B1C1, B2C2, B3C3; on the third stage were trained the relations A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 and tested the formation of equivalence classes between the stimulus B1C1, B2C2, B3C3. Each training was composed by twelve trials. The learning was 100% of correct. The instruction was presented just for the participants in Experimental Group. The results dont show differences in performance between groups in mean trials required at all stages of training, however, the experimental group has a higher initial performance of the control group in mean correct responses in steps training and superior performance the experimental group the average of correct responses during all phases of the test experiment. It can be argued that the initial effect of autoclitic was to increase the accuracy of responses by facilitating the acquisition of the conditional discrimination and stimulus equivalence training . Such precision produced by autoclitic may have helped the participant to issue a verbal operant intraverbal depicting taught conditional discriminations and tested in the experiment , as all participants in the experimental group started to emit vocal verbal response \" this is it\" , accompanied by the answer correct choice between conditional and discriminative stimuli

Os índices de evasão e fracasso escolar no ensino fundamental no Brasil, nos dias atuais, ainda são alarmantes. Torna-se importante o planejamento de procedimentos que minimizem as dificuldades envolvidas no aprendizado da leitura e escrita e potencializem a aquisição dessas habilidades. Nessa direção, vários grupos de pesquisadores têm focado seus estudos, através do paradigma de equivalência, visando identificar as variáveis relacionadas com a formação de classes de equivalência e suas relações com a leitura, trazendo nítidas implicações educacionais. Porém, quando a leitura com compreensão é adquirida, não significa necessariamente que o leitor esteja sob controle das unidades verbais menores do que a palavra. O presente estudo teve como objetivo investigar variáveis relevantes no processo da emergência do controle por unidades mínimas e, portanto, da leitura recombinativa, com cinco crianças pré-escolares. Foi utilizado o programa EQUIV, em que foram ensinadas as relações entre palavra ditada e palavra impressa correspondente (AC); em seguida testadas a leitura de novas palavras, formadas pela recombinação das unidades menores presentes nas palavras ensinadas previamente. O programa era constituído de vinte fases, que se dividiam em cinco tipos básicos de procedimentos: Pré-Teste, Pré-Treino, Treinos, Testes e Pós-testes. Os dados demonstraram que três participantes apresentaram desempenhos próximos de 100% nos Testes de Leitura Recombinativa, indicando transferência das funções discriminativas das unidades mínimas das palavras de treino para as novas palavras. Nos pós-testes todos os participantes foram capazes de nomear palavras e sílabas as quais não eram capazes de nomear anteriormente. Nos testes de Equivalência realizados ao final do programa, os mesmos três participantes obtiveram desempenhos próximos de 100%, o que indica leitura com compreensão. Os resultados do presente estudo indicam que a ausência dos treinos das relações entre palavra ditada e figuras (AB) e dos Testes de Equivalência, não impediram a emergência do controle por unidades mínimas, sugerindo um procedimento mais econômico para a obtenção da leitura recombinativa. Portanto, o ganho de se instalar o controle por unidades mínimas mais rapidamente, suscita questões teóricas e sugere pesquisas futuras nessa direção. / The percentage of drop outs in Brazilian primary school is still alarming. It is important, though, to arrange procedures that minimize difficulties in reading and writing and maximize the acquisition of these abilities. In this direction, many groups of researchers have focused in studies in which through equivalence paradigm they identify variables related with the formation of equivalences class and its relations with reading comprehension. But when reading comprehension is acquired, it does not necessarily means that the reader is under the control of minimal verbal units of the word. The present study aimed to investigate the relevant variables in the process of emergence of minimal unit control and recombinative reading, with five preschool children. Using EQUIV software, relations between oral and printed word (AC) were taught; afterwards, textual behavior of novel words were tested, which were composed by minimal units of the words taught previously. The program consisted of twenty experimental phases, divided into four basic types: Pretest, Pretraining, Training and Post- Test. The results showed that three participants presented recombinative reading closer to 100% correct performances, indicating transfer of discriminative functions of the minimal units trained to new words. In Post- Tests, all participants developed repertoire of naming oral words and syllables that werent able to name before. In Equivalence Tests applied in the final phase, the same three participants obtained performance closer to 100%, indicating reading comprehension. The results of the present study point that the absence of training relations between oral word and picture (AB) and Equivalence Tests, didnt inhibit the emergence of control by minimal units, suggesting economy in the procedures of recombinative reading. Hence, the quicker installment of minimal verbal units control than previous studies generates theoretical questions and suggests future researches in this direction.

O efeito do reforçamento é apontado como a principal variável para a formação de discriminações condicionais e de equivalência de estímulos. Pesquisas têm se concentrado em analisar outras variáveis que influenciam a formação de discriminações condicionais e de equivalência de estímulos. Tais estudos sugerem que o comportamento verbal pode facilitar a formação do responder discriminativo e da equivalência de estímulos, porém poucas pesquisas tem se concentrado em investigar o efeito do comportamento verbal autoclítico neste responder. O objetivo da presente pesquisa foi analisar se uma instrução que orientou o participante a emitir uma resposta verbal vocal com autoclítico qualificador de asserção é, entre a apresentação do estímulo modelo e a escolha do estímulo amostra, em uma tarefa de matching to sample produz efeitos na formação de novas classes de equivalência e influencia na quantidade de tentativas necessárias para a formação do responder discriminativo condicional. Foram utilizados vinte participantes adultos divididos em dois grupos, Grupo Controle e Grupo Experimental. Todos os participantes foram submetidos a três etapas de treino e três etapas de testes. Na primeira etapa foram treinadas as relações A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 e testada a formação de classes equivalência entre os estímulos B1C1, B2C2, B3C3; na segunda etapa foram treinadas as relações A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 e testada à formação de classes equivalência entre os estímulos B1C1, B2C2, B3C3; na terceira etapa foram treinadas as relações A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 e testada à formação de classes equivalência entre os estímulos B1C1, B2C2, B3C3. Cada treino foi composto por doze tentativas, tendo como critério de aprendizagem a ocorrência de 100% de respostas corretas. A instrução foi apresentada apenas aos participantes do Grupo Experimental. Os resultados obtidos não apresentam diferenças de desempenho, entre os grupos na média de tentativas necessárias em todas as etapas de treino, entretanto o Grupo Experimental apresenta um desempenho inicial superior ao do Grupo Controle na média de respostas corretas nas Etapas de treino e um desempenho superior do Grupo Experimental na média de respostas corretas durante todas as etapas de teste do experimento. É possível afirmar que o efeito inicial do autoclítico foi de aumentar a precisão das respostas facilitando a aquisição da discriminação condicional e da formação de equivalência de estímulos. Tal precisão produzida pelo autoclítico pode ter auxiliado o participante a emitir um operante verbal intraverbal que descreve as discriminações condicionais ensinadas e testadas no experimento, já que todos os participantes do Grupo Experimental passaram a emitir a resposta verbal vocal este é este, acompanhado da resposta de escolha correta entre os estímulos condicional e discriminativo / The effect of reinforcement is pointed as the main variable for formation of conditional discrimination and stimulus equivalence. Researches have concentrated on analyzing other variables that influence the formation of conditional discrimination and stimulus equivalence. Such studies suggest that verbal behavior can facilitate formation of discriminative responding and stimulus equivalence, however few researches have focused on investigate the effect of autoclitic verbal behavior in this responding. The purpose of the present research was to analyze if an instruction that oriented the participant to emit a vocal verbal response, the autoclitic qualifier is, between the presentation of model stimulus and the choice of the sample stimulus in a task of match to sample, produces effects in formation of new equivalence classes and if it influences over the quantity of trials required to meet conditional discriminative responding. Twenty participants were dived in two groups, Control Group and Experimental Group. All the participants were submitted to three stages of training and three stages of tests. During the first stage of training the relations A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 were trained and were tested the formation of equivalence classes between stimulus B1C1, B2C2, B3C3; on the second stage of training the relations A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 and was tested the formation of equivalence classes between stimulus B1C1, B2C2, B3C3; on the third stage were trained the relations A1B1, A2B2, A3B3 e A1C1, A2C2, A3C3 and tested the formation of equivalence classes between the stimulus B1C1, B2C2, B3C3. Each training was composed by twelve trials. The learning was 100% of correct. The instruction was presented just for the participants in Experimental Group. The results dont show differences in performance between groups in mean trials required at all stages of training, however, the experimental group has a higher initial performance of the control group in mean correct responses in steps training and superior performance the experimental group the average of correct responses during all phases of the test experiment. It can be argued that the initial effect of autoclitic was to increase the accuracy of responses by facilitating the acquisition of the conditional discrimination and stimulus equivalence training . Such precision produced by autoclitic may have helped the participant to issue a verbal operant intraverbal depicting taught conditional discriminations and tested in the experiment , as all participants in the experimental group started to emit vocal verbal response \" this is it\" , accompanied by the answer correct choice between conditional and discriminative stimuli

In Experiment 1, four subjects were trained to match two visual samples (A) and their respective nonidentical visual comparisons (B); i.e., A-B matching. During nonreinforced test trials, all subjects demonstrated stimulus equivalences within the context of sample-comparison reversibility (B-A matching): When B stimuli were used as samples, appropriate responding to A comparisons occurred. A-B and B-A matching persisted given novel stimuli as alternate comparisons. However, the novel comparisons were consistently selected in the presence of nonmatching stimuli: i.e., during trials comprised of a novel comparison, an A or B sample from one stimulus class, and an "incorrect" comparison from the other, B or A stimuli respectively. In Experiment 2, three groups of subjects were trained under three different mediated transfer paradigms (e.g., A-B, C-B matching). Tests for reversibility (e.g., B0A, B0C matching) and mediated transfer (e.g., A-C, C-A matching)evinced stimulus equivalences for 11 of 12 subjects. The 11 subjects also matched the mediated equivalences given novel comparisons; whereas, they selected the novel comparisons when combined with nonmatching stimuli. Overall, the demonstrated stimulus equivalences favor a concept learning interpretation of non-identity matching-to-sample. Additionally, the trained and mediated matching relations were comprised of complementary sets of S+ and S- rules: Any stimulus of a given class used as a sample designated both the "correct" and "incorrect" comparisons.

The present study was designed to investigate the effects of a stimulus change inserted in the large component of a mixed fixed-ratio 10 fixed-ratio 100 schedule. In mixed fixed-ratio schedules, a run of responses which approximates the response requirement of the smaller fixed ratio occurs at the beginning of the larger fixed ratio. This run of responses and the pause it precedes is called a prime. In Experiment I, priming acquisition was compared in a mixed schedule in which a change in key-color followed completion of the first 10 responses of the fixed-ratio 100 component and a mixed schedule with no stimulus change. Primes were acquired more rapidly in the mixed schedule with the stimulus change and the number of responses in a priming run was less variable than occurred without the stimulus change. In Experiment II, the effect of the stimulus change on primes was further investigated by removal of the smaller fixed-ratio component or by varying the location of the stimulus change. Primes occurred only when the smaller fixed-ratio component was present. Varying the location of the stimulus change resulted in the transfer of control from the external stimulus to response-produced stimuli. Future investigation of this point of transfer should prove useful in the study of the proprioceptive stimulus control of homogeneous behavior sequences. In Experiments Ill through VI, the variables controlling the length of the post-prime and the post-reinforcement pauses were investigated using the mixed FR x chained FR x FR y schedule. In this series of experiments, FR x was varied with FR y held constant at both high and low values. In addition, FR y was varied with FR x held constant at both high and low values. The results indicate that the post-prime pause is primarily a function of FR y, the number of responses required after the priming run. On the other hand, both post-reinforcement pauses were shown to be a function of FR x, the size of the small fixed ratio. An interaction between FR x and FR y and both the post-reinforcement and the post-prime pauses suggested that pausing in mixed schedules is a closed system. Taken as a whole, these results indicate the importance of mixed chained schedules in the investigation of the priming phenomenon.

In the autoshaping preparation subjects are exposed to magazine training (US-only trials) prior to the conditioning phase in which a stimulus (conditioned stimulus, CS) predicts the delivery of a response independent reinforcer (unconditioned stimulus, US). Two experiments examined the hypothesis that irrespective of the number of US-only trials administered the magazine training and autoshaping contexts interact to determine conditioning, as measured by contact responses to the CS. The contexts employed were houselight on (light, L) and houselight off (dark, D). In Experiment I pigeons were exposed to 1, 20, 100, or 900 US-only trials in a D, or L, context prior to autoshaping in the D, or L. The results indicated that first, autoshaping in the L was superior to autoshaping in the D. Second, irrespective of the autoshaping context performance was better following magazine training in the different context. Third, the function relating performance to the number of US-only trials was an inverted U if magazine training occurred in the D and biphasic if it occurred in the L, irrespective of the autoshaping context. In Experiment II pigeons were exposed to 900 US-only trials in a D, or L, context. Prior to autoshaping in the D, or L, they were exposed to either the magazine training, or a novel, context; this constituted extinction of the US-only context. The results demonstrated that when magazine training and autoshaping occur in the D extinction in the magazine training context results in superior performance relative to extinction in a novel context. However, extinction in a novel context results in better performance, relative to extinction of the magazine training context, if magazine training and autoshaping proceed in the L. In summary, conditioning in the autoshaping paradigm is determined by the magazine training and autoshaping contexts and their interaction. The development of conditioning is therefore dependent on both the associative value of the CS and the background stimuli.