Abstract
The purpose of the present article was to outline directions for future behavioral research on human language and cognition in relation to understanding and treating psychopathological symptoms. According to Relational Frame Theory, which provides a behavioral account of human language and cognition, derived stimulus relations and transformation of stimulus functions have the central role in explaining higher mental activities in people. The present paper first categorizes previous research on transformation of stimulus function on the basis of the objectives of each study. The published literature was then divided into 3 categories: studies on acquiring relational framing, on transformation of stimulus functions, and on contextual control over the transformation of stimulus functions. The empirical literature is reviewed briefly. Next, clinical implications of the literature on transformation of stimulus functions are described, and limitations of previous research are explained. Finally, some challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for behavioral research on human language and cognition in terms of understanding and treating psychopathological symptoms are suggested.
