CONFIGURAL LEARNING IN HUMANS - THE TRANSVERSE PATTERNING PROBLEM

Most learning theorists concur that some sort of configural representa tion system is required for animals to solve certain compound discrimi nations. Transverse patterning (A+ vs. B-, B+ vs. C-, CS vs. A-) is on e example of a problem that requires a configural solution. It has bee n reported in the past that adult humans are unable to solve this prob lem (Berch & Israel, 1971; Franks, 1976). We investigated the generali ty of these reports. Moreover, we examined whether a stepwise approach to training this problem would facilitate learning and at what stage in training subjects adopt a configural strategy. We found that colleg e-aged adults had little difficulty solving the transverse patterning problem, and that their learning was greatly facilitated by using the stepwise approach described by Alvarado and Rudy (1989). Moreover, we found that subjects seem to adopt a configural strategy when faced wit h ambiguous stimulus pairs even when an elemental strategy would suffi ce. These results provide insight into how humans solve configural pro blems and also suggest some direct tests of the role of the hippocampu s in configural associations.