The role of adventitious reinforcement during differential reinforcement of other behavior: A systematic replication

Differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) is commonly used to decrease problem behavior by presenting reinforcers contingent upon the absence of a target response. Although it is well demonstrated that DROs decrease response rates, the processes producing these decreases are not well understood. The present study systematically replicated previous research assessing whether adventitious reinforcement of alternative behavior contributes to the effectiveness of DRO. We presented university students with two options on a computer and reinforced target responding on a variable-ratio schedule. Next, we compared decreases in target-response rates and any increases in alternative responding during DRO schedules versus yoked variable-time schedules or extinction probes. DRO schedules resulted in the lowest target-response rate and highest alternative-response rate. These findings generally provide some support for the adventitious reinforcement of “other” behavior.     

What is Debate for? The Rationality of Tibetan Debates and the Role of Humor

In this essay, I examine the mode of operation and aim of debates in the Tibetan Buddhist traditions. I contrast the probative form of argument that was privileged by the Indian tradition to the more agonic practice favored by Tibetan scholastics. I also examine the rules that preside over this dialectical practice, which is seen by the Tibetan tradition as essential to a proper scholastic education. I argue, however, that the practice of debates cannot be reduced to this dialectical model, for it has an important performative aspect not easily encompassed by the rules. I examine this aspect of Tibetan debates, focusing particularly on the role of humor. I conclude with a few remarks on the type of rationality entailed by the importance of humor and of other rhetorical elements involved in Tibetan debates.

Letter perception: from pixels to pandemonium

In 1959, Oliver Selfridge proposed a model of letter perception, the Pandemonium model, in which the central hypothesis was that letters are identified via their component features. Although a consensus developed around this general approach over the years, key evidence in its favor remained lacking. Recent research has started to provide important evidence in favor of feature-based letter perception, describing the nature of the features, and the time-course of processes involved in mapping features onto abstract letter identities. There is now hope that future 'pandemonium-like' models will be able to account for the rich empirical database on letter identification that has accumulated over the past 50 years, hence solving one key component of the reading process.     

Computerized procedure for analyzing hand kinematics with a peg-moving task (Sarah-Pegworks)

This article describes Sarah-Pegworks, a computerized procedure for analyzing hand kinematics based on the peg-moving task. The procedure, developed in Visual Basic 6 programming language, includes (1) processing raw data from an infrared motion-tracking system, (2) identifying movement components, and (3) analyzing and presenting hand kinematic information in numerical and graphic outputs. Fifty-five normal adults set the parameters relative to filtering and movement identification. A case was presented to illustrate the clinical value of this procedure.     

Detecting local convexity on the pareto surface

Recent regain in interest in multi‐criteria optimization approaches to provide a designer with multiple solutions to select from and support decisions has led to various methodologies to generate such solutions and possibly approximate the Pareto set. This paper introduces the notions of H‐ and w‐convexities, and develops a simple method to identify local convexity of Pareto hyper‐surfaces since their shape can dictate the choice of the method to use to obtain Pareto solutions and possibly to build an approximation of that set. The method is based on comparing the results from the weighting method to those of the Tchebycheff method at any point on the Pareto hyper‐surface. If, under some conditions, the points obtained from the two methods are identical or not, a local convexity or its lack can be assumed at that location and in its immediate neighbourhood. A numerical example is included. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Idees,Mots, Langues en Politique et en Diplomatie

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