Teaching coin equivalences via matching to sample.
A moderately mentally retarded woman learned coin equivalences (with 5-, 10-, and 15-cent values) via matching to sample. When taught to match two different coin stimuli to a printed price of equal value, she could then match the coin stimuli to each other and state their values without further training. Additional coin-matching and naming performances emerged after establishing the equivalence between a new coin stimulus and one member of an existing class of equivalent stimuli. The study extends research on stimulus class formation by examining its usefulness in a new application, in teaching a skill repertoire that requires mastery of large numbers of individual performances-monetary equivalences. Further, the study suggests efficient strategies for teaching functional money skills to developmentally limited populations.
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D004495:Education of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000534:rehabilitation; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods