title: Variables influencing stimulus overselectivity and "tunnel vision" in developmentally delayed children.
abstract: Three variables (diagnosis, location of cues, and MA of learners) influencing stimulus control and stimulus overselectivity in autistic children were assessed. Eight autistic and 8 intellectually average children, matched on MA, were trained on two discrimination tasks; one task contained two "within-stimulus" (i.e., physically connected) cues; the other contained the same two cues presented "extra-stimulus" (i.e., physically separate). Generalization gradients were used following training to measure the degree of stimulus control acquired by each cue. Results showed: autistic subjects tended to respond overselectively only in the extra-stimulus condition; MA was positively correlated with breadth of learning; and when autistic children were overselective to one cue, some stimulus control was also acquired by the second cue. The notion of tunnel vision was discussed, as it may represent a "keystone" deficit interfering with stimulus control and learning by autistic children.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001288:Attention; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003463:Cues; D004193:Discrimination Learning; D005795:Generalization, Stimulus; D006801:Humans; D007360:Intelligence; D010812:Physical Stimulation