Transfer of function through equivalence classes involving facial expressions of happiness and fear

• Grant number: 16/05935-6
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: April 01, 2017
• End date: March 31, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Experimental Psychology
• Principal Investigator: William Ferreira Perez
• Grantee: William Ferreira Perez
• Host Institution: Associação Paradigma Centro de Ciências e Tecnologia do Comportamento. São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• City of the host institution: São Paulo
• Associated researchers: João Henrique de Almeida ; Júlio César Coelho de Rose

Abstract

Studies on equivalence relations have suggested that abstract symbols might acquire emotional meaning when related to facial expressions of happiness, sadness or ranger, for example. Recently, researches have highlighted the importance of the symbolic generalization of fear on the genesis of anxiety disorders. The present research project aims to investigate the transfer of meaning from facial expressions of fear to abstract stimuli via equivalence relations. It presents three experiments that apply the procedures develop by Bortoloti and de Rose (e.g., 2009, 2012) to assess transfer of meaning. Participants will be verbally competent adults. In Experiment 1, a matching-to-sample task will be used to establish two equivalence classes between facial expressions of emotions and abstract stimuli. Facial expressions of fear will be part of Class 1: A1(Fear)-B1-C1-D1; facial expressions of happiness will be part of Class 2: A2(Hapiness)-B2-C2-D2. After relational training (AB, AC, CD) and equivalence tests (BD, DB), a differential semantic scale will be given to participants so that they evaluate the meaning of one stimulus from each class, D1 and D2, related to a facial expression of fear (A1) or happiness (A2), respectively. After that, the same abstract stimuli will be presented in a behavioral task to register the occurrence of avoidance responses. Experiment 2 will replicate Experiment 1, however, the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP) will be used to measure the implicit meaning of the abstract stimuli - instead of the avoidance task. Finally, Experiment 3 will investigate the contextual control of transfer of meaning. Therefor, two equivalence classes under contextual control of two background colors will be established: Orange: A1(Fear)-B1-C1-D1, A2(Happiness)-B2-C2-D2; Purple: A1(Fear)-B1-C1-D2, A2(Happiness)-B2-C2-D1.The differential semantic scale and the IRAP will assess the transformation of meaning under contextual control. (AU)

Scientific publications

(6)

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

HENKLAIN, MARCELO H. O.; HAYDU, VERONICA BENDER; CARMO, JOAO S.; MUNIZ, MONALISA; PEREZ, WILLIAM F.. Expanding the evidence of content validity for the Teacher Behavior Checklist using the IRAP: TBC's content validity using the IRAP. PSYCHOLOGICAL RECORD, v. 69, n. 2, p. 205-214, JUN 2019. (16/05935-6, 08/57705-8, 17/10037-0)

GOMES, CAINA T.; PEREZ, WILLIAM F.; DE ALMEIDA, JOAO HENRIQUE; RIBEIRO, ARTHUR; DE ROSE, JULIO C.; BARNES-HOLMES, DERMOT. Assessing a Derived Transformation of Functions Using the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure Under Three Motivative Conditions. PSYCHOLOGICAL RECORD, v. 69, n. 4, p. 487-497, DEC 2019. (08/57705-8, 16/05935-6, 17/10037-0)

GOMES, CAINA T.; PEREZ, WILLIAM F. F.; BARNES-HOLMES, DERMOT; HARTE, COLIN. Relating relational networks: An initial experimental analysis. JOURNAL OF THE EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS OF BEHAVIOR, v. 120, n. 2, p. 13-pg., 2023-05-12. (17/10037-0, 19/24210-0, 08/57705-8, 16/05935-6)

PEREZ, WILLIAM F.; HUZIWARA, EDSON M.; RODRIGUES, RAONE M.; VILELA, EDUARDO C.; TOMANARI, GERSON Y.; VAIDYA, MANISH. Effect of observing response requirements to sample and comparison stimuli on the establishment of reject control (sample/S- relations). JOURNAL OF THE EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS OF BEHAVIOR, v. 114, n. 1, MAY 2020. (16/05935-6, 08/57705-8, 17/10037-0)

PEREZ, WILLIAM F.; DE ALMEIDA, JOAO HENRIQUE; DE ROSE, JULIO C.; DORIGON, ANDREA H.; DE VASCONCELLOS, EDUARDO L.; DA SILVA, MARCO A.; LIMA, NAJRA D. P.; DE ALMEIDA, ROBERTA B. M.; MONTAN, RODRIGO N. M.; BARNES-HOLMES, DERMOT. Implicit and Explicit Measures of Transformation of Function from Facial Expressions of Fear and of Happiness via Equivalence Relations. PSYCHOLOGICAL RECORD, v. 69, n. 1, p. 13-24, MAR 2019. (17/10037-0, 08/57705-8, 16/05935-6, 14/01874-7)

PEREZ, WILLIAM F.; DE ALMEIDA, JOAO HENRIQUE; SOARES, LUCIA C. C. S.; WANG, TAINA F. L.; DE MORAIS, THAIS E. D. G.; MASCARENHAS, V, ANDRE; DE ROSE, JULIO C.. Fearful Faces and the Derived Transfer of Aversive Functions. PSYCHOLOGICAL RECORD, v. 70, n. 3, p. 387-396, SEP 2020. (16/05935-6, 14/50909-8, 17/10037-0)