Derived transformation of functions through hierarchical relational networks: Bi-directional or Uni-directional process?

The process of transformation of stimulus functions as been examined extensively in the RFT literature. However, it is only recently that studies have been conducted to examine transformation of functions through hierarchical relations such as containment and belongingness. The few studies to date that have examined this process have found some evidence to support that transformation of stimulus functions does indeed take place in this context. However, some studies have found resultant patterns of framing to be unidirectional (properties transfer only from higher- to lower-order class members), while others have found bi-directional responding (properties transfer either from higher- to lower-order or from lower- to higher-order class members) in nature. The current talk outlines a series of experiments which aimed to examine this process. The results show distinct patterns of bi-directional responding from some participants and unidirectional responding from others. We discuss why this might have occurred.