Abstract
Simulation functions were introduced by Khojasteh et al. as a method to extend several classes of fixed point theorems by a simple condition. After that, many researchers have amplified the knowledge of such kind of contractions in several ways. R-functions, (R, S)-contractions and (A, S)-contractions can be considered as approaches in this direction. A common characteristic of the previous kind of contractive maps is the fact that they are defined by a strict inequality. In this manuscript, we show the advantages of replacing such inequality with a weaker one, involving a family of more general auxiliary functions. As a consequence of our study, we show that not only the above-commented contractions are particular cases, but also another classes of contractive maps correspond to this new point of view.