Relational Cues are Affectively Differentiated

The present study explored whether cues trained to specify relational (C_rel) or relational and functional (C_rel+func) control are differentially evaluated. If valences vary across C_rel+func but not C_rel cues, the two cue types would be deemed functionally distinct, as posited by relational frame theory (RFT; McLoughlin et al., 2019). One hundred sixty-six participants, split into six groups, underwent matching-to-sample (MTS) training and testing to establish cues exerting C_rel (analogous to the phrases more than or brighter than) or C_rel+func (analogous to the phrases happier than or calmer than) control. Besides MTS, cues were evaluated using visual analog scales, which revealed that valence magnitudes varied significantly across C_rel+func and C_rel cues. In particular, cues specifying opposing C_rel poles (e.g., more vs. less), like cues specifying opposing C_rel+func poles (happier vs. unhappier), evoked differential evaluations. This suggests C_rel+func and C_rel control are functionally reducible to a single C_rel+func category, implying the latter anticipates C_rel and C_func control, contra RFT. After highlighting the limitations inherent to “a-ontological” conceptualizations of contextual cues, we present an alternate take of cue properties derived from Amd’s (2022) realist approach, which accounts for the present findings and suggests novel avenues for future research.