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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2017 Apr 4.
Published in final edited form as: Conductual. 2015 Apr;3(1):4–25.

Table 2.

The assumptions of Urcuioli’s (2008) theory of pigeons’ stimulus class formation

  1. The functional matching stimuli in pigeons’ successive matching are compounds consisting of the nominal stimulus and when it appears in a matching trial (viz., first (as a sample) or second (as a comparison))

  2. The continuous juxtaposition of non-reinforced with reinforced sample-comparison combinations in successive matching facilitates stimulus class formation.

  3. Stimulus classes consist of the elements (the functional matching stimuli) of the reinforced trials.

  4. Elements common to more than one stimulus class cause their respective classes to merge