Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure Research Articles

Recent Developments in RFT Encourage Interbehavioral Field-Based Views of Human Language and Cognition: A Preliminary Analysis

AbstractRelational frame theory (RFT) as a behavior-analytic approach to understanding human language and cognition is now over 40 years old. However, the last 8 years have seen a relatively intense period of empirical and conceptual developments within the theory. Some of this work has begun to draw on early and much underplayed features of RFT, including field-theoretical analyses and concepts. These analyses are relatively nascent and thus the current article aims to provide a relatively detailed example of a field-theoretical analysis of a specific RFT research program. We begin with a brief overview of the “traditional” RFT approach to human language and cognition, followed by a summary of recent research involving the implicit relational assessment procedure (IRAP) and the differential arbitrarily applicable relational responding effects (DAARRE) model. We then go on to consider the DAARRE model in the context of J. R. Kantor’s interbehavioral formula for the psychological event. Having done so, we conclude that the challenge involved in analyzing increasingly complex forms of human language and cognition appears to call for more field-based theorizing in some form or another.

Assessing Implicit Theories in Sexual Offending Using Indirect Measures: Feasibility, Reliability, and Incremental Validity.

This study assessed psychometric qualities of indirect measures assessing Implicit Theories (ITs) of sexual offending: Implicit Association Task (IAT), Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP), and Relational Responding Task (RRT). For comparison reasons, aggressive behavior was also assessed. In a male sample from the general population (N = 109), we assessed each measure's (a) feasibility (mean latency, error rate, passing criteria), (b) internal consistency, (c) convergent and discriminant validity, and (d) incremental and predictive validity. Results indicated that no indirect measure met all criteria. Although the IAT was reasonably feasible and reliable in measuring aggression, ITs could not be reliably assessed. The RRT was feasible and somewhat reliable in assessing ITs, whereas the IRAP showed limited feasibility, high task complexity, low reliability, and the presence of a method factor. No measure had incremental predictive validity over the use of self-report measures, although we note that the power to detect such associations was limited. As none of the indirect measures performed satisfactorily on the measured criteria, the use of these measures in clinical practice seems currently unwarranted to assess ITs.

The implicit power of positive thinking: The effect of positive episodic simulation on implicit future expectancies.

Previous research demonstrating that positive episodic simulation enhances future expectancies has relied on explicit expectancy measures. The current study investigated the effects of episodic simulation on implicit expectancies. Using the Future Thinking Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (FT-IRAP), participants made true/false decisions to indicate whether or not they expected positive/negative outcomes after adopting orientations consistent or inconsistent with an optimistic disposition. The outcome measure, DIRAP, was based on response time differences between consistent and inconsistent blocks. Participants then engaged in either positive simulation training, in which they imagined positive future events, or a neutral visualisation task before repeating the FT-IRAP twice following 10-minute intervals. Positive simulation training increased DIRAP scores for don't-expect-negative trials-boosting participants' readiness to affirm that negative events were unlikely to happen to them. Although findings did not generalise across all trial types, they show potential for positive simulation training to enhance implicit future expectancies.

Implicit attitudes towards dementia after education: Preliminary trial results from Japan.

This study aimed to investigate the feasibility and validity of measuring implicit attitudes towards dementia in adults and older adults and evaluate the impact of dementia-friendly education using virtual reality (VR) on implicit attitudes. This study was a secondary analysis of data from a randomised controlled trial. Community members in Tokyo aged 20-90 years participated in dementia-friendly education with or without VR. At the end of the dementia-friendly education programs, implicit attitudes towards dementia were measured using the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP). Of the 145 participants, 89 (61%) started the IRAP, and 21 (15%) completed it. Lower age was significantly associated with the start/completion of the IRAP, and the age thresholds at which 50% of participants would not start/complete it were estimated to be 72.3/44.8 years, respectively. Those who had experience interacting with people with dementia other than family members had lower IRAP scores than those who had no such experience. The intervention group participating in the VR program had lower IRAP scores than the control group (p = .09). Although measuring implicit attitudes using IRAP is deemed not feasible for people in their 70s and older, the differences in interaction experience would be evidence supporting the validity of the measurements of implicit attitudes towards dementia. The results suggest that dementia-friendly education, using VR, improves implicit attitudes towards dementia.

Acceptance and commitment training for reducing burnout in medical students during a clinical clerkship in psychiatry and palliative care: A pilot study

Physicians are likely to experience burnout early in their medical education, and it only accelerates as their clinical and academic responsibilities expand and they begin clinical practice. However, effective burnout interventions for clinical-year medical students are lacking. Avoidance of unpleasant internal experiences and decreased engagement in value-based behaviors are associated with burnout. This study, an open-label pilot research with a single-center, before-and-after comparative study design and without a control group, aimed to examine the feasibility and effectiveness of brief acceptance and commitment training (ACT) in reducing burnout during psychiatric clinical clerkships at a medical school. The feasibility proved to be good, with all the participants (n = 56) completing the training. There were no significant differences in the emotional exhaustion (EE) and depersonalization (DP) scores of burnout as measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) at the end of the ACT and two months following the intervention. A comparison was made with scores recorded before the intervention, and significant differences were observed. A subsample of medical students with moderate or greater burnout at T0 manifested significant burnout score reductions. The same subsample revealed a significant increase in psychological flexibility as indicated by the progress factor score on the Valuing Questionnaire (VQ) at T1 compared to T0 and a significant reduction in reaction latency to negative words as indicated by the DIRAP score of the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP) for anxiety. We argue that short-term ACT during clinical clerkships of medical students in psychiatry and palliative care is feasible and potentially effective, and a multi-site comparative study using more direct behavioral measures is warranted to further investigate its effectiveness.

Assessing the functions of Japanese words for self using the implicit relational assessment procedure

This study aimed to clarify the functional differences between the use of the Japanese word for self watashi and an individual's name under the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP). Fifty-seven native Japanese speakers participated in the study. Each participant completed the Japanese version of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES-J) and two IRAPs (I-IRAP and name-IRAP). IRAPs with two labels (watashi denoting “I” or [name] or “others”) and two targets (positive or negative words) were used. One-way repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests yielded significant main effects for the IRAPs. Bonferroni post hoc tests indicated that the effects for the name-positive trial type differed significantly from that of the three other trial types; there were no significant differences between the remaining trial types. However, I-IRAP trials differed significantly from other positive/negative trial types. Only the name-positive IRAP trial type correlated positively with the RSES-J score. A mixed-model 2 (IRAP; I or Name) × 4 (four trials) ANOVA showed no main effects or significant interaction effects. Steiger's Z showed a correlation between the name-positive trial type and RSES-J scores, and the I-positive trial type did not show a significant difference from RSES-J scores. The results indicate that the single-trial-type-dominance effect only occurred in the name-IRAP.

Deictic Framing Performance Fails to Generalize to Other Perspective-Taking Tasks

The behavioral processes underlying perspective taking have not been studied extensively. One approach to understanding and enhancing perspective taking, deictic framing, has been proposed. Proponents of this approach have suggested that deictic framing is a core property of perspective taking. A training protocol based on deictic framing has been developed and tested, but researchers generally evaluate the effectiveness of the protocol using tasks that have a similar format to the training protocol. Little research has examined the protocol’s effectiveness for improving performance in different perspective-taking tasks. We investigated generalization of the performance of three groups of university students trained with a deictic-framing protocol (or not) and tested with two other perspective-taking tasks: a visuospatial perspective taking using a cupboard containing a range of objects and a version of the implicit relational assessment procedure specifically designed to measure perspective taking. The first group was trained with the original verbal protocol with deictic expressions; the second group with the same protocol involving nondeictic words; and the third group was merely exposed to deictic expressions as a control condition. The results suggested that deictic framing is not fundamental to perspective taking, as the performance of the two experimental groups was not significantly different from the control group’s performance. Identification of specific stimulus functions involved in successful perspective taking and how those functions can be established should be addressed in future research.

Explicit and Implicit Attitudes towards Individuals with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder among School-Based Professionals

ABSTRACT Occupational therapy practitioners (OTP) work with individuals with diagnoses that are subject to stigma including attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). While measures have been developed to broadly assess implicit attitudes toward disability, bias toward ADHD specifically has not been examined in individuals who work with this population. This cross-sectional study involved school-based professionals recruited via online message boards. Forty-seven individuals (24 OT, 23 other professionals) participated in online questionnaires including the ADHD Stigma Questionnaire to assess explicit bias. An author developed Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure focusing on stigma words related to ADHD was completed by a subset of 27 individuals. Although both groups displayed bias, occupational therapy practitioners demonstrated lower rates of both explicit and implicit bias toward individuals with ADHD than other professionals. Correlations between lower explicit and implicit bias scores were found among all participants. This study introduces an important tool for assessing preexisting biases toward children with ADHD. It has the potential to impact educational training regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion for professionals working in the school and early intervention setting including occupational therapy practitioners.

Effects of Perspective Taking and Values Consistency in Reducing Implicit Racial Bias

The current study explored the effect of perspective taking and values consistency tasks on reducing implicit racial bias. Using a repeated measures design with a control group, 39 participants, 20 female and 19 males aged from 18-54 years, who identified as White were administered the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure. All participants in the experimental group (n = 19) and control group (n = 20) completed the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire, Modified Modern Racism Scale, Valuing Questionnaire, and a Likert scale. Experimental group participants completed brief values consistency and perspective taking tasks, whereas the control group completed a guided task. A 2 x 4 mixed repeated-measures analysis of variance was conducted to determine if there was interaction effect between group and trial types and a MANOVA to identify differences in the explicit measures between both groups. Results showed that after the values work and perspective taking exercises, participants in the experimental group recorded shorter mean responses for Inconsistent-Black trial blocks versus Consistent-Black trial blocks compared to the control group. Additionally, a statistically significant impact for interaction between condition and trial type was found for the Consistent-White trial type in the experimental group. Recommendations for future research are presented.

Clinicians' implicit and explicit attitudes about the legitimacy of functional neurological disorders correlate with referral decisions.

Uncertainty regarding the legitimacy of functional neurological disorder (FND) remains among some health care professionals. Despite treatment guidelines and consensus recommendations, variability in clinical practice referral decisions persists. Evidence from other conditions suggests such clinical decision making is impacted by practitioners' implicit and explicit attitudes. We aimed to identify whether health care professionals hold implicit and/or explicit attitudes about the legitimacy of FND and whether these attitudes are associated with referral decision making. We included 66 health care professionals who work with people with neurological conditions: n=37 medical doctors, mainly neurologists (n=18) and psychiatrists (n=10), and n=29 doctoral level practitioner psychologists. Participants completed an Implicit Association Test (IAT), Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP), a referral decision-making vignette task and self-report measures of explicit attitudes on FND-legitimacy, therapeutic optimism and clinician confidence. Multiple Sclerosis (MS) was used as a comparator condition. Participants self-reported strong explicit FND-legitimate and MS-legitimate attitudes but demonstrated an implicit FND-illegitimate/MS-legitimate bias. Deeper examination provided by the IRAP data indicated pro-FND-legitimate attitudes, but no bias for or against FND-illegitimate-contrasting the pro-MS-legitimate, anti-MS-illegitimate attitudes for the comparator condition. Attitudes about FND-illegitimacy were negatively associated with likelihood of referral to physical interventions such as physiotherapy. Medical doctors had lower treatment optimism and stronger explicit attitudes that FND is illegitimate than psychologists. At an implicit level, clinicians are uncertain about the illegitimacy of FND, and such attitudes are associated with lower likelihood of referral to physiotherapy in particular. Improved education on FND among health care professionals is indicated.

Online Administration of the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure: The Web-IRAP

Online Administration of the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure: The Web-IRAP

Efeito da depressão na autoestima real e ideal: um estudo com o IRAP

Este estudo visou comparar as respostas relacionais de autoestima real e ideal por meio do Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP) e explorar a correlação entre a pontuação dos participantes na Escala de Autoestima de Rosenberg (EAR) e os escores D-IRAP. Participaram do estudo 20 adultos, distribuídos em dois grupos, com e sem depressão. O procedimento teve duas fases: (a) aplicação do BDI-II e do EAR, (b) aplicação do IRAP autoestima real e do IRAP autoestima ideal. Os resultados mostraram que participantes com depressão diferem de participantes sem depressão quanto a autoestima avaliada pelo EAR e apresentaram similaridades na avaliação pelo IRAP. Participantes com depressão apresentaram: vieses negativos de autoestima real e vieses positivos de autoestima ideal. Os participantes sem depressão não apresentaram diferenças quanto a autoestima real e a ideal.

Using a natural-language implicit relational assessment procedure (IRAP) to examine verbal relations involved in psychological inflexibility in children.

The current study explored the feasibility and potential utility of a natural-language IRAP for examining psychological inflexibility in primary school children. 44 children (age range: 10–11 years old) underwent two different IRAP tasks. In the first one, participants responded to simple natural language statements relating joy and sadness with positive and negative evaluative terms (e.g., “Joy is good”, “Sadness is bad”). In the second, participants responded to more complex statements that framed the individual's experience of these emotions either as a condition that allows one to engage in valued actions (e.g., “I joyful wanna play”) or as a barrier for them (e.g., “I sad don't care about playing”). Participants also completed a standard psychometric measure of psychological inflexibility (the Avoidance and Fusion Questionnaire for Youth, AFQ-Y8) and visual analogue scale (VAS) ratings of the same statements used in both IRAP tasks. 82% of the participants completed both IRAP tasks maintaining accuracy and latency criteria, showing that a natural language IRAP is feasible with primary school children. IRAP results did not reveal substantial differences between responses to joy and sadness. IRAP scores and explicit rating scores were not correlated, and neither of them was correlated with AFQ-Y8 scores. Implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed.

Exploring the natural language-IRAP as a potential measure of adolescents’ perspective-taking

Researchers have used the implicit relational assessment procedure (IRAP) to explore adults' deictic relational responding, with recent evidence suggesting natural language IRAPs (NL-IRAPs) capture some perspective-taking. The present study sought to extend literature on perspective-taking NL-IRAPs by presenting NL-IRAPs to a sample of adolescents (n = 110) aged 14–17 years (M = 15.64, SD = 0.52). All participants completed a Self-Focused NL-IRAP and were randomly assigned to complete either a Specified Other-Focused NL-IRAP or Unspecified Other-Focused NL-IRAP. No statistically significant differences were observed in IRAP performance when responding from one's own perspective versus a specified other's perspective. A statistically significant interaction effect was observed between perspective (self-other) and trial type when an unspecified other was used. No statistically significant relationships were observed between self-reported perspective-taking tendencies and IRAP performance. Findings are discussed with reference to (i) the importance of tailoring stimuli to the individual and (ii) the challenge of maintaining deictic functions of self-other while evoking perspective-taking, not ‘sense-making’.

The IRAP as a Measure of Implicit Cognition: A Case of Frankenstein's Monster.

The implicit relational assessment procedure (IRAP) was initially developed as a way to assess the strength and probability of natural verbal relations, as defined within relational frame theory (RFT), and was conceptually rooted within the behavior-analytic tradition. However, the IRAP quickly became employed primarily as a measure of implicit cognition, more in line with mainstream psychology than behavior analysis. In doing so, research using the IRAP increasingly employed ill-defined mainstream psychological terms, focused on correlational analyses with traditional psychometry, and thus emphasized prediction over the prediction-and-influence of behavior. Although perhaps beneficial to the study of implicit cognition, this approach could be argued to have limited the IRAP's utility in behavior analyses of human language and cognition. In the current article we will reflect on this suggestion, on the IRAPs place and current use in the field of behavior analysis, and on its potential future within behavioral psychology in light of recent conceptual and empirical advances in RFT. In doing so, it is hoped that the measure may be refined into a better understood, more precise, functional-analytic tool.

Assessing Psychological Inflexibility Pertaining to Self in Patients With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Using an Indirect Measure of (Nonassociative) Propositions

Relational frame theory (RFT) is a modern behavioral account of human language and cognition, which focuses on relations or propositions, rather than associations, as core explanatory constructs. In an attempt to measure such propositions, RFT researchers have developed the implicit relational assessment procedure (IRAP). It has been argued that the size of an IRAP effect may provide a metric for psychological inflexibility. The current study aimed to determine whether psychological inflexibility, as measured by the self-focused Natural Language-IRAP (NL-IRAP), would be higher in a clinical sample of individuals with a diagnosis of PTSD (N = 29) when compared to a nonclinical sample. Subsequently, the study investigated whether the self-focused NL-IRAP could be used to predict the presence of a clinical diagnosis, using a ROC analysis. As predicted, higher levels of psychological inflexibility were observed for the clinical group. The self-focused NL-IRAP also correctly classified the presence of PTSD (AUC = 76%) with a sensitivity level of 79.3% and a specificity level of 59.2%. Overall, the use of the IRAP as a nonassociative clinical measure appears promising.

How Implicit Attitudes toward Vaccination Affect Vaccine Hesitancy and Behaviour: Developing and Validating the V-IRAP.

Vaccination is one of the most important ways of fighting infectious diseases, such as COVID-19. However, vaccine hesitancy and refusal can reduce adherence to vaccination campaigns, and therefore undermine their effectiveness. Although the scientific community has made great efforts to understand the psychological causes of vaccine hesitancy, studies on vaccine intention have usually relied on traditional detection techniques, such as questionnaires. Probing these constructs explicitly could be problematic due to defense mechanisms or social desirability. Thus, a measure capable of detecting implicit attitudes towards vaccination is needed. To achieve this aim, we designed and validated a new test called the Vaccine-IRAP, or V-IRAP, which is a modified version of the original Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure, or IRAP, task. The V-IRAP allows the unspoken reasons behind vaccine hesitancy to be investigated, and is able to distinguish between positive and negative beliefs on vaccination. The test was assessed in a sample of 151 participants. The V-IRAP showed good internal reliability and convergent validity, with meaningful correlational patterns with explicit measures. Moreover, it revealed incremental validity over such explicit measures. Lastly, the V-IRAP was able to shed light on the implicit attitudes involved in vaccine refusal, revealing negative attitudes relative to vaccine-related risks in non-vaccinated participants. Overall, these results support V-IRAP as a sensitive and reliable tool that could be used in future studies on implicit attitudes toward vaccination.

Attempting to Analyze Perspective-Taking with a False Belief Vignette Using the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure

Attempting to Analyze Perspective-Taking with a False Belief Vignette Using the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure

The Role of Relational Contextual Cues versus Relational Coherence Indicators as Response Options on the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure

The Role of Relational Contextual Cues versus Relational Coherence Indicators as Response Options on the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure

Implicit Cognition Tests for the Assessment of Suicide Risk: a Systematic Review.

Purpose of ReviewSuicide risk assessment is a challenge in clinical practice. Implicit measures may present with advantages with respect to explicit methods, and therefore may be useful for the assessment of suicide risk. We conducted a systematic review of 2 databases (PubMed and EMBASE) about implicit tests that measure suicide risk to explore their validity and reliability.Recent FindingsInitial research revealed 321 articles. After the selection process, 31 articles were included in the review. The most death-related implicit cognition test used was the Death/Suicide Implicit association test (D/S IAT), followed by the Suicide Stroop Task. The Suicide Affect Misattribution Procedure (S-AMP) and the Death version of the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (D-IRAP) were also used.SummaryWe found that the measures reviewed were generally valid for the assessment of past and future suicidal thoughts and behaviors, with statistically significant results regarding retrospective and prospective associations.