The effect of a semiconductor matrix on the band anticrossing interaction is studied for four different dilute-oxide material systems: ZnSO, ZnSeO, ZnTeO, and ZnCdTeO. The choice of host material allows for independent control of the energy separation between the conduction band edge and the O energy level as well as the coupling parameter. The transition energies measured by photoreflectance and optical absorption are well explained by the band anticrossing model with the coupling parameter increasing from 1.35 eV for ZnSO to 2.8 eV for ZnTeO and showing approximately linear dependence on the electronegativity difference between O and the host anion.