ACQUIRED EQUIVALENCE OF CUES IN PIGEON AUTOSHAPING - EFFECTS OF TRAINING WITH COMMON CONSEQUENCES AND WITH COMMON ANTECEDENTS

In three experiments, we sought evidence for the acquired equivalence of cues in pigeons trained in an autoshaping paradigm. In Experiment 1 , presentations of each of a pair of cues (different keylight stimuli) preceded a common consequence (a different keylight stimulus). The pa ttern of response then established by further training given to one me mber of the pair was found to generalize preferentially to the other, demonstrating equivalence between cues that had shared a common conseq uence. The same test procedure was used in Experiment 2, but with a tr aining procedure in which each cue of a pair was preceded by a given s timulus. This too resulted in enhanced generalization between members of the pair, showing that equivalence can be established when cues hav e been experienced along with a common antecedent. Both training proce dures were combined in Experiment 3 to confirm the reliability of the effects previously obtained. The discussion is focused on ways in whic h the associative explanation offered for cases of equivalence mediate d by a common consequence might be extended to accommodate equivalence mediated by a common antecedent.