Equivalence-based Instruction Research Articles

Comparing Equivalence‐Based Instruction to a PowerPoint Video Lecture to Teach Differential Reinforcement Descriptors to College Students

ABSTRACTDifferential reinforcement (DR) procedures involve systematically arranging the environment to increase the future frequency of socially important behaviors while minimizing or eliminating problem behaviors. The purpose of the present study was to compare the effects of computerized stimulus equivalence‐based instruction (EBI) to a pre‐recorded voiceover PowerPoint lecture to teach definitions and examples of differential reinforcement procedures to college students. The three classes comprised textual stimuli characterizing differential reinforcement of other (DRO), alternative (DRA), and incompatible (DRI) behavior. Each class contained three members: name, definition, and short vignette examples. To program for generalization, two vignette exemplars were used during training while a third exemplar was used to assess stimulus generalization. We used a between‐subjects group design to compare pretest and posttest performances of EBI and lecture participants across (a) computer match‐to‐sample (MTS), (b) card sorting, and (c) written tests (fill‐in and multiple‐choice), with the latter two used to determine the degree to which class‐consistent responding generalized from selection‐based responding to other response topographies (i.e., sorting and writing). Results demonstrated that EBI produced greater score increases than lecture for MTS and card sorting tests, but increases were comparable for the two groups for both fill‐in and multiple‐choice written tests. Another posttest at 1 week showed maintenance of performance gains. Implications for using EBI to teach behavior analytic content are discussed.

Using Equivalence-Based Instruction to Improve Expression and Comprehension of Emotional Metaphors for Children on the Autism Spectrum

Metaphors are frequently used in daily life. Many children on the autism spectrum have difficulties in comprehending and generating metaphors. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an equivalence-based instruction (EBI) procedure aimed at improving comprehension and expression of emotions in metaphors. Four Chinese boys on the spectrum participated in this multiple probe design across emotions (i.e., angry, sad, happy, anxious, and fear) study. In this procedure, first, the instructor presented a picture of an emotion (A) with its commonly understood features (B) (e.g., facial expression—smile, nonverbal gestures—bouncing up and down). The child was taught the A→B relation by labeling the emotion and its corresponding features. Next, the instructor presented a picture of the stimulus used in a metaphor (C) sharing a similar feature (B) with the corresponding emotion. The child was taught the C→B relation by labeling the stimulus and its corresponding feature. After completion of the training, the untaught A→C (metaphorical expression, e.g., “What is happy like?”) and C→A (metaphorical comprehension, e.g., “If I say, “She is like a bouncing ball. How does she feel?”) relations were tested. Results indicated that the EBI procedure was functionally related to improved performance for metaphorical expression in three children and for metaphorical comprehension in two children. The use of EBI to facilitate the acquisition of metaphorical expression and comprehension for children on the spectrum is discussed.

Effect of Density of Tests Interposed in Equivalence-Based Instruction on Speech Accuracy in Picture Naming

Effect of Density of Tests Interposed in Equivalence-Based Instruction on Speech Accuracy in Picture Naming

Behavior Analysts' Relationship to Relating Relations: A Survey on Perceptions, Acceptability, Knowledge, and Capacity for Derived Stimulus Relations Research and Practice.

The study and application of procedures that result in stimulus relations via relational frame theory (RFT) and stimulus equivalence (applied as equivalence-based instruction; EBI), have made tremendous strides in contemporary behavior analysis. However, applications at scale lag basic and translational research. We turn our attention inward to investigate potential causes. We replicated and extended Enoch and Nicholson (Behavior Analysis in Practice, 13(3), 609-617, 2020) by conducting a survey of behavior analysts (n = 129) to determine their perceptions, experiences, and barriers in carrying out research and practice based on RFT and EBI. Participants indicated an interest in RFT and EBI, and mostly perceive both within the scope of behavior analysis. A majority of behavior analysts reported formal education in EBI (78.3%), in contrast to a minority in RFT (15.5%). Adoption of procedures derived from RFT and EBI may be in proportion to formal education. Compounded with a lack of accuracy on basic knowledge questions, there is a potential gap in capacity in the field in addressing behavior related to complex verbal behavior.

Procedural parameters in equivalence-based instruction with individuals diagnosed with autism: A call for systematic research.

Equivalence-based instruction (EBI) is an efficient and efficacious methodology to establish equivalence classes that has been used to teach various academic skills to neurotypical adults. Although previous reviews confirmed the utility of EBI with participants with developmental disabilities, it is unclear whether certain procedural parameters are associated with positive equivalence outcomes. We extended previous reviews by categorizing studies that used EBI with individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and assessed whether any procedural parameters were associated with better equivalence responding. Due to the wide variability of procedural parameters in EBI research, the best procedural permutations to form equivalence classes with individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder are still unknown. Thus, this paper serves as a call to action for applied researchers. Specifically, we encourage and invite researchers to systematically investigate the necessary variables or combination of variables that may lead to successful equivalence class formation.

Promoting the Emergence of Vocational Knowledge through Equivalence-Based Instruction with a Young Adult with Autism.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40617-023-00814-z.

A review on equivalence‐based procedures to teach food‐portion estimation skills

This review involved a systematic analysis of equivalence-based instruction (EBI) that aimed to improve food-size interventions in diverse populations. Systematic searches identified seven studies published since 2010 that met inclusion criteria. These studies were analyzed according to their participants, design, setting, content taught, training structures, training protocol, testing format, treatment integrity, and outcomes. Results showed EBI procedures for teaching food estimation skills have been mostly implemented with adults. The type of content taught in the identified studies included carbohydrate ranges, portion size with food and non-food items, measuring cups and nutritional content of calories. Majority of included studies used one-to-many training structure and simultaneous protocols for teaching stimulus relations. Five studies completed a generalization probe and three studies reported treatment integrity data. Overall, all participants demonstrated skill acquisition of novel relations between food and portion measurement aides. Recommendations for future research and clinical applications of EBI in teaching food portion estimation are presented.

Sentence comprehension and production in children with cochlear implants: Errorless procedures and equivalence‐based instruction

AbstractResearch supports equivalence‐based instruction (EBI) and matrix training for increased listening and speaking skills in children with cochlear implants (CI). We incorporated errorless procedures to optimize the EBI and evaluated the effects on the auditory comprehension and verbal responding at‐sentences level in six CI children who were readers and showed inaccurate tacting. Subject‐verb‐object sentences were arranged in two matrices; diagonal combinations were trained and evaluated non‐diagonal combinations. EBI included stimulus fading and exclusion to directly teach the dictated sentence‐picture matching; written‐sentences construction upon dictation also was taught. Probes assessed the derived stimulus‐stimulus and stimulus‐response relations. All participants learned the auditory‐visual discriminations and the exclusion resulted in fewer errors than on a stimulus fading procedure. Five participants formed equivalence classes and increased verbal responding to equivalent stimuli, especially pictures tacting. They also showed recombinative generalization for both matrices. Professionals can incorporate errorless procedures to EBI for improving sentence comprehension, tacting, and productivity in CI children.

Using Equivalence-Based Instruction to Teach Schedules of Reinforcement to Staff Members

Using Equivalence-Based Instruction to Teach Schedules of Reinforcement to Staff Members

Training Staff to Create Equivalence-Based Instruction Materials in Qualtrics.

Staff training is an important line of research to ensure that clinicians in the field of applied behavior analysis provide quality services. One approach to providing training involves the use of asynchronous training materials in which the trainer and trainee do not need to be physically present at the same time. This allows for training despite limited numbers of trainers or geographic restrictions. The purpose of this study was to train participants to create equivalence-based instruction (EBI) materials in Qualtrics, a commercial survey software package. In the first phase of the study, participants experienced a training package consisting of a video model and task analysis that described how to create EBI materials. Phase 2, evaluated whether the EBI materials created in Phase 1 led to equivalence-based responding. Results indicated that the training was effective for training staff and that staff found the training socially acceptable. Results also demonstrated that the EBI materials resulted in the learning of the trained and derived relations.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40732-021-00497-4.

Toward Efficiency and Effectiveness: Comparing Equivalence-based Instruction to Progressive Discrete Trial Teaching.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40617-022-00687-8.

Comparing stimulus equivalence‐based instruction to self‐study of videos to teach examples of sign language to adults

AbstractThe current study compared equivalence‐based instruction (EBI) to self‐study of American Sign Language (ASL) videos to teach eight 3‐member classes of signs with 24 college students. Four of the equivalence classes consisted of verbs (i.e., throw, touch, blow, spin) and four classes were object nouns (i.e., truck, dollar, egg, ball). Each class consisted of (a) a picture corresponding to the targeted sign, (b) a video clip depicting the sign's topography, and (c) a printed corresponding word. Pretests and posttests assessed the degree to which participants (a) showed emergence of classes during match‐to‐sample (MTS) tests, (b) could sign both single words and verb‐noun pairs (i.e., speaker tasks), and (c) could comply with signed requests consisting of ASL verb‐noun pairs (i.e., listener tasks). EBI consisted of training the AB relation (picture to video clip) followed by tests of all possible derived relations. The AC relation (picture to printed word) was not trained because it was assumed to be present in the participants' repertoires. Self‐study consisted of viewing video clips of the eight ASL signs simultaneously presented with the printed word. The MTS posttest showed equivalence classes emerged for all participants from both EBI and self‐study groups. In addition, all EBI participants met passing criterion for emitting all single signs, all verb‐noun sign pairs, and they complied with all listener tasks. In contrast, only 4 of 12 participants from the self‐study group emitted the single signs. After re‐exposure to self‐study, most participants then passed all posttests. These results are important because they demonstrate recombinative generalization of ASL signs, which increases the utility of ASL skills.

Comparing Group-Contingency and Individualized Equivalence-Based Instruction to a PowerPoint Lecture to Establish Equivalence Classes of Reinforcement and Punishment Procedures with College Students

Comparing Group-Contingency and Individualized Equivalence-Based Instruction to a PowerPoint Lecture to Establish Equivalence Classes of Reinforcement and Punishment Procedures with College Students

Evidence From Children with Autism that Derived Relational Responding is a Generalized Operant.

We conducted an empirical examination of derived relational responding as a generalized operant and concurrently evaluated the validity and efficacy of program items contained in the Promoting the Emergence of Advanced Knowledge - Equivalence (PEAK-E) curriculum. A first study utilized a multiple-baseline across-skills experimental arrangement to determine the efficacy of equivalence-based instruction guided by PEAK-E, replicated across 11 children with autism. A total of 33 individualized skills were taught, and the subsequent emergence of untrained relations was tested throughout the investigation. The mastery criterion was achieved for 29 of the 33 instructional targets. Additionally, for 3 participants, results were again replicated with a novel set of stimuli. A second study evaluated the degree to which multiple-exemplar equivalence-based instruction led to the emergence of derived relational responding as a generalized operant. The organized nature of the PEAK curriculum allowed the impact on derived relational responding to be compared to that produced by earlier PEAK models that are focused on the direct training of traditional verbal operants. PEAK-E instruction was introduced in a multiple-baseline design across two participants, with a third staying in a training baseline throughout. Increases in derived relational responding using novel, untrained stimuli were only observed when multiple-exemplar equivalence-based instruction was introduced. Taken together, these results provide support for derived relational responding as a generalized operant and demonstrate the utility of conducting larger scale evaluations of higher order behavioral phenomena in single-case experimental arrangements.

Comparing two equivalence‐based instruction protocols and self‐study for teaching logical fallacies to college students

AbstractThe current study compared two equivalence‐based instruction (EBI) protocols to each other and to a self‐study control group to teach classes of logical fallacies to college students. The two different EBI protocols were stimulus‐pairing yes–no (SPYN) responding and match‐to‐sample (MTS). Four three‐member logical fallacy classes were taught (i.e., ad hominem, circular argument, faulty analogy, and slippery slope). Class members consisted of the fallacy definition, fallacy name, and multiple examples of vignettes of each fallacy. Three vignette exemplars per class were used to program for generalization across vignettes, and two more were reserved to assess generalization. Written and computerized tests were completed before training, immediately following training, and at a 1‐week follow‐up session. The results showed that both MTS and SPYN EBI procedures were superior to self‐study procedures with respect to computerized test outcomes, but not written test outcomes. In addition, the effects of MTS and SPYN were similar to one another regarding equivalence class formation, computerized tests, and written tests. These results increase the range of procedures that may be used to establish equivalence classes.

Translational evaluation of training structures in equivalence‐based instruction

We used a laboratory preparation to evaluate the claim that equivalence-based instruction (EBI) is an efficient form of instruction due to eliminating the need for emergent relations to be taught. Three groups of college students received training to establish 3 stimulus classes with 4 members in each class. Two groups received either a linear series (EBI-LS) or a 1-to-many training structure (EBI-OTM group). A control group received complete instruction (CI) that targeted all possible relations between the members of each class. The EBI-OTM group required fewer trials to complete instruction compared to CI, whereas EBI-LS did not. The EBI-OTM and the CI groups performed equally well on a posttest that followed initial attainment of the mastery criterion, whereas the EBI-LS group performed more poorly than the other 2. The groups' performance on a function transfer test did not differ. The results support the claim that compared to CI, EBI is an efficient form of instruction when it follows an OTM structure. However, they also suggest this efficiency advantage cannot be attributed to the fewer relations that need to be taught in EBI, as the EBI-OTM and the EBI-LS groups were trained on the same number of relations.

Expansion of Sidman's theory: The inclusion of prompt stimuli in equivalence classes.

Stimulus equivalence is defined as the ability to relate stimuli in novel ways after training in which not all of the stimuli had been directly linked to one another. Sidman (2000) suggested all elements of conditional discrimination training contingencies that result in equivalence potentially become class members. Research has demonstrated the inclusion of samples, comparisons, responses, and reinforcers in equivalence classes. Given the evidence that all elements of a conditional discrimination become part of the class, the purpose of this study was to determine if class-specific prompts would also enter into their relevant equivalence classes. Experiment 1 investigated the inclusion of prompts in an equivalence class using abstract stimuli with neurotypical students enrolled in higher education courses. Experiment 2 systematically replicated Experiment 1 using meaningful stimuli and individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. The results of both experiments demonstrated that class-specific prompts became part of equivalence classes with the other positive elements of the contingency. The results are discussed in terms of class expansion and the potential impact on equivalence-based instruction.

Using stimulus equivalence‐based instruction to teach young children their caregivers' contact information

AbstractStimulus equivalence‐based instruction (EBI) was used to teach young children of typical development three 4‐member equivalence classes containing contact information from three caregivers (e.g., mother, father, and grandmother). Each class comprised the caregiver's (a) photograph, (b) printed name, (c) printed phone number, and (d) printed name of employer. A pretest‐train‐posttest‐maintenance design with a nontreatment control group comparison was used. Pretests and posttests assessed the degree to which class‐consistent responding occurred across both visual–visual matching tasks and intraverbals. Intraverbal responding was also probed with a novel instructor. Overall, EBI participants scored significantly higher during the posttests than the control participants across both the derived relations and intraverbal tests. These differences maintained 2 weeks later. Thus, responding generalized to (a) a different topography (i.e., intraverbal), (b) auditory versions of the stimuli, and (c) in the presence of a novel instructor. How such procedures may benefit lost children are discussed.

Efficiency of equivalence-based instruction: A laboratory evaluation.

In equivalence-based instruction (EBI), a large number of stimulus relations can be established through direct instruction of a smaller number of strategically selected relations. We evaluated the efficiency and other potential benefits of EBI in 2 between-subjects experiments with college students that compared EBI with complete instruction (CI). In Experiment 1 (n = 50), mastery criteria in both conditions required an equal number of equally sized trial blocks at equal accuracy. Under those conditions, trials to passing posttests did not differ significantly between groups during the establishment of 3-member classes or during expansion to 4- and 5-member classes. In Experiment 2 (n = 48), mastery criteria were equated across conditions in terms of the number of consecutive correct trials required for each trial type. Under those conditions, EBI required fewer trials to complete than did CI. Neither experiment found an advantage of EBI over CI in terms of facilitating future learning or maintenance of class-consistent responding. Overall, the results suggest that greater efficiency of EBI compared to CI may largely be attributed to learning assessment practices, but additional research is warranted with additional EBI training structures and trial arrangements.

Using Stimulus Equivalence-Based Instruction to Teach Young Children to Sort Recycling, Trash, and Compost Items

Equivalence-based instruction (EBI) refers to a set of procedures in which overlapping conditional discriminations among stimuli are taught, resulting in the emergence of additional derived relations without further training. In the present study, EBI was used to teach 3 young children 3 four-member classes of stimuli related to recycling, trash, and compost items. The class members were the textual category names (Stimulus A), recycle/trash/compost symbols (Stimulus B), pictures of the designated colored bins (Stimulus C), and pictures of recycling/trash/compost items (Stimulus D). During training of the baseline relations and testing of derived relations, stimuli were presented using a match-to-sample format with cards in a binder. Generalization of class-consistent responding was programmed for by using multiple exemplars of the B and D stimuli (i.e., symbols and items, respectively). During item-sorting generalization tests, 3-dimensional objects representing each class member were used instead of the cards to allow for sorting of actual recycling, trash, and compost items into bins. A multiple-baseline design across participants was used to evaluate the effects of EBI. Following EBI, all participants demonstrated the emergence of the equivalence classes as evidenced by class-consistent selection responses during tests for derived relations with the textual and picture stimuli cards. More importantly, responding generalized to accurate sorting of 3-dimensional recycling, trash, and compost items into specific bins appropriate for each item. These skills also maintained at a 1-week follow-up. Thus, the present study demonstrates an effective procedure to teach sorting of waste materials to young children.