Research on the emergence of human avoidance behavior in the absence of direct contact with an aversive event is somewhat limited. Consistent with work on derived relational responding, the present study sought to investigate the transformation of avoidance response functions in accordance with the relational frames of Same and Opposite. Participants were first exposed to nonarbitrary and arbitrary relational training and testing in order to establish Same and Opposite relations among arbitrary stimuli. The training tasks were; Same-A1-B1, Same-A1-C1, Opposite-A1-B2, Opposite-A1-C2. Next, all possible combinatorially entailed (i.e., B-C and C-B) relations were tested. During the avoidance-conditioning phase, one stimulus (B1) from the relational network signaled a simple avoidance response that cancelled a scheduled presentation of an aversive image and sound. All but one of the participants who met the criteria for conditioned avoidance also demonstrated derived avoidance by emitting the avoidance response in the presence of C1 and the nonavoidance response in the presence of C2. Control participants who were not exposed to relational training and testing did not show derived avoidance. Implications of the findings for understanding clinically significant avoidance behavior are discussed.

the Psychological record, 2008, 58, 269-286 Some of the material from this article was submitted as part of Julia rhoden's master's degree at the Swansea University, conducted under the supervision of Simon Dymond. We thank Jordan randell for assistance with data collection and chris Ninness and two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments.

The purpose of this study was to compare reported levels of marital quality, marital stability, and the marital processes of cohesion, flexibility, and communication in the marriages of nontraditional and traditional women. Selected data from the Marital Instability Over the Life Course Data Set were used. A subsample of 74 married women who were defined as nontraditional and a comparison group of 274 traditional women were selected according to their occupational status and gender role orientation. Nontraditional women included those reporting a nontraditional gender role orientation and employment in a professional or managerial position. Traditional women included those who reported a traditional gender role orientation and employment in a clerical, sales, service, or private household worker occupation. Results of repeated measures multivariate analysis of covariance indicated many similarities between the two groups; however, nontraditional women reported greater flexibility in their marriages. Implications of the findings for practice in clinical work with couples are addressed.

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