An Arbitrary Matching Training Supplement to the AVC Discrimination Test
Abstract
Kerr, Meyerson and Flora (1977) devised a series of small learning tasks that could be used to assess developmentally disabled individuals on the typical tasks to be performed in a school setting or sheltered workshop and required only very simple equipment. Davine (1990) suggested that there may be transitional skills between AVC levels IV and V not found by Kerr et al. Davine looked at four experimental steps designed to test this notion. The results of this study were inconclusive. Wilson (1991) tested the same notion by devising a series of nonidentity matching tasks which were generally found to be more difficult than AVC levels V and VI.
The present experiment consisted of a follow-up to the works of Davine and Wilson using physically simpler stimuli than those used by Davine in tasks similar to her tasks, and administering them in a different sequence. Subjects were recruited from the Center for Developmentally Disabled Adults in Kalamazoo Michigan, ranged in age from 26 to 82, and in retardation ranged moderate to severe. The instrumentation is the same as that used by Kerr et al.