The Role of Verbal Behavior, Stimulus Nameability,\ud and Familiarity on the Equivalence Performances\ud of Autistic and Normally Developing Children

摘要

The emergence of equivalence relations and the role of overall verbal competence\udand stimulus nameability and familiarity in this regard were investigated\udacross 3 experiments involving 15 children diagnosed with autistic spectrum\uddisorder (ASD), as well as 3 typically developing children. The experimental\udsequence comprised 4 identical stages, each with 4 phases. The relationship\udbetween verbal competence and equivalence was assessed by including children\udwith ASD categorized with different levels of verbal behavior. Stimulus\udnameability and familiarity were assessed by systematically varying these features\udacross different stimulus sets presented during 4 experimental stages. The\udresults of all experiments indicated that the equivalence performances of both\udgroups were influenced by their levels of verbal behavior and to some extent by\udstimulus familiarity. The data are discussed in the context of alternative theoretical\udaccounts of the processes believed to underlie equivalence.