The Transfer of Function in a Consumer Choice Setting

Expanding equivalence classes with a positive valenced stimulus can alter the preference to the other stimuli in the class (Arntzen, Fagerstrøm and Foxall, 2015). In the present study, three 3-member equivalence classes (ABC) are created using conditional discriminations. With a positive outcome on a test for emergent relations, each of the three classes are expanded by training different types of D stimuli to the nodes (A). For the first experimental group, the D stimuli consisted of the weather chart symbols sunny (D1), cloudy (D2) and rain/thunder (D3). The D stimuli for the second group consisted of 3 neutral pictures of the dikes in Holland. Following the class expansion for both groups, a final test for emergent relations was implemented (ABCD). Thereafter a transfer of function test was implemented. The B stimuli (B1, B2 and B3) was attached to three water bottles, and participants were told to pick a water bottle. Participants from the weather chart group had a tendency to pick the bottle in the same class as the D1 stimulus (sunny). For the Holland group (neutral stimuli) the choices were randomly divided amongst the three bottles (B1, B2 and B3).