Human choice in concurrent ratio-interval schedules of reinforcement

Seven undergraduates participated in a concurrent-choice experiment with monetary reinforcers. Response-independent analogues of variable-interval and variable-ratio schedules were used to assess whether subjects would maximize reinforcement rate. The optimal pattern of behavior, in terms of maximizing reinforcement rate, involved a large bias toward the ratio alternative, with only occasional sampling of the interval schedule. Most experiments with pigeons, however, demonstrate matching of response rates to reinforcement rates, with only slight biases for the ratio schedule. Although subjects in the present experiment allocated more time to the ratio alternative than required by matching, the magnitude of the bias did not approximate that predicted by a maximizing account. After exposure to clock stimuli correlated with the operation of each schedule, 1 subject's behavior did show a substantial level of bias, increasing the total number of reinforcers obtained, and lay at a point between the predictions of matching and maximizing. The other subjects, however, continued to respond less optimally. The present results can be accounted for by a view of matching that incorporates the effects of delayed reinforcement.     

Enduring problems for molecular accounts of operant behavior.

Although the Associative Learner (AL) theory advocated by C. P. Shimp et al (see record 1990-21730-001) can simulate several features of human and nonhuman performance in free-operant situations, it fails to account for many of the findings that are theoretically most powerful. It underestimates the sensitivity of behavior to relative reinforcement rate and totally omits any role for incentive variables such as amount and delay of reinforcement. At present, it is not sufficiently comprehensive to serve as an adequate alternative to R. J. Herrnstein's (see PA, Vol 44:10034; see also 1961) matching theory as a general account of behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The empirical claims of maximization theory: A reply to Rachlin and to Kagel, Battalio, and Green.

H. Rachlin (see record 1984-02970-001) and J. H. Kagel et al (see record 1984-02959-001) reported errors in the present author's (see record 1982-22589-001) critique of maximization theory. They presented new evidence that demonstrated that maximization accounts better for equilibrium behavior on schedules of reinforcement than did matching. In this article, Prelec argues that the allegations of mathematical and conceptual errors are without substance and the new data do not differentially favor maximization or matching. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Theory evaluation can be unintentional self-portraiture: A reply to Williams.

B. A. Williams's (see record 1990-21741-001) commentary on C. P. Shimp et al (see record 1990-21730-001) derives from his matching law perspective and shows chiefly that associative learner and the matching law are different. The choice of which theoretical approach is better depends on one's background views about the nature and purpose of theory, the nature of a free-operant behavior stream, and the suitability of classical methods and results for identifying and resolving critical theoretical problems such as identifying suitable analytical units and adequately characterizing how reinforcement reorganizes the local structure of the behavior stream. Williams' perspective, that of a molar position, needs further conceptual clarification and empirical support before it can be convincing. An alternative molecular view seems attractive for offering the promise of conceptually integrating molar and molecular empirical phenomena. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teaching self-control to disruptive children.

Taught 8 9-10 yr old disruptive males in an after-school remedial reading class to match teachers' evaluations of their behavior in the context of a token reinforcement program. Initially, a standard, teacher-administered token program was implemented; disruptive behavior was markedly reduced and academic output increased. Ss were then taught that they could earn bonus points for matching a teacher's evaluation of their academic effort and social behavior. The checking of the Ss was gradually eliminated until there was no point consequence for overevaluation or underevaluation; only praise for matching the teacher evaluation continued. During the time when teaching of self-evaluation was initiated and even after all point loss or gain was removed for overevaluation or underevaluation, Ss maintained very low levels of disruptive behavior and high rates of academic output. Generalization of appropriate behavior was obtained at times of the day when the token program was not in effect. (17 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Expectancy": Sleight-of-hand mentalism, not mechanism or process.

Replies to comments by J. W. Fagen (see record 1994-08950-001) on the article by J. L. Gewirtz and M. Peláez-Nogueras (see record 1993-12989-001), which concerned reinforcement as a central principle of behavior change in infants. Gewirtz and Peláez-Nogueras state that they did not claim that all behavior is learned through operant reinforcement contingencies. Further, they question the necessity of moving beyond basic reinforcement and derivative principles to the realm of intrapsychic concepts such as the "violation of contingency expectancy" to explain behavior changes resulting from operant learning procedures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Searching for Patterns in Random Sequences.

In a probability-guessing paradigm, participants predict which of two events will occur on each trial. Participants generally frequency match even though frequency matching is nonoptimal with random sequences. The optimal strategy is to guess the most frequent event, maximizing. We hypothesize that frequency matching results from a search for patterns, even in random sequences. Using both callisotomy patients and patients with frontal brain damage, Wolford, Miller, and Gazzaniaga (2000) found frequency matching in the left hemisphere but maximizing in the right hemisphere. In this paper, we show that a secondary task that competes for left hemisphere resources moves the participants toward maximizing but that a right-hemisphere task preserves frequency matching. We also show that a misunderstanding of randomness contributes to frequency matching. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of negative verbal cues upon verbal behavior.

Research which investigated the capacity to modify behavior, starting from the framework of Skinner's operant conditioning paradigm and utilizing verbal behavior, was found to have primarily explored the effect of positive secondary reinforcement. The present investigation explored the effect of a negative verbal cue presented under different schedules of reinforcement upon verbal behavior. Ss (male VA psychiatric patients) responded to projective techniques. The E varied the frequency of negative verbal reinforcement defined as "unh unh." The hypothesis that such a negative reinforcement would depress verbal behavior was substantiated, with a periodic schedule of reinforcement being more effective. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive and affective components of reinforcement.

Responds to B. F. Skinner's (see record 1986-24282-001) article on components of reinforcement and examines why reinforcers strengthen behavior. The present author suggests that (1) the pleasing aspect, (2) the correct or incorrect aspect, and (3) the strengthening aspect are 3 equally important components of reinforcement, referring to the affective, cognitive, and behavioral characteristics of reinforcement, respectively. The occurrence of the 1st 2 characteristics is considered a necessary antecedent for the occurrence of the 3rd. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical behavior therapy and the experimental analysis of behavior

Advances in areas of behavior analysis are discussed to show the relevance of experimental science to behavior therapy. It is concluded that there are many areas of mutual interest between experimental operant psychologists and behavior therapists that may serve to enhance the clinical efficacy and range of behavior problems addressed by behavior therapists. Specific examination is given to areas of experimental behavior analysis such as reinforcement, including schedules of reinforcement; the matching law; advanced issues in stimulus control; the interaction between operant and classical conditioning; behavioral momentum; rule-governed behavior; and stimulus equivalence. The argument that behavior therapists are not knowledgeable about behavior analysis is disputed, and it is concluded that behavior therapists are in a unique position to be the practice professionals best able to utilize the principles of learning and behavior analysis in the service of adaptive behavior change.     

Pigeons' spatial memory: IV. Effects of intertrial interval manipulations on delayed matching of key location.

In Exp I, the effect of intertrial interval (ITI) duration on 3 Silver King pigeons' delayed matching of key location was investigated. Trials began with a ready stimulus (brief operation of the grain feeder); then one randomly chosen key from a 3?×?3 matrix was lit briefly as the sample. After a delay (retention interval) of 1, 4 or 8 sec, the sample key was lit again, along with another key. A peck at the key that had served as the sample (correct comparison) produced food reinforcement, whereas an incorrect peck led directly to the ITI. The ITI was 2.5 or 25 sec. Matching accuracy was lower at the shorter ITI and was linearly related to the log of the ratio of the ITI to the delay interval. In Exp II, noncontingent food reinforcement presented during the 25-sec ITI lowered matching accuracy of 5 Ss. In Exp III, reinforcement was given for pecking a key (correct, incorrect, or irrelevant) presented during the ITI. Reinforcement for pecking any key had a facilitative effect on matching accuracy. Results are discussed in relation to models of spatial memory, the apparent parallels between processes in delayed matching and classical conditioning, and the notion that expectancy of reinforcement during the matching trial facilitates accurate choice of the correct key. (French abstract) (37 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reinforcement is not enough: Learned expectancies and infant behavior.

Comments that J. L. Gewirtz and M. Peláez-Nogueras (see record 1993-12989-001) should be congratulated for reminding infant researchers of the methodological and conceptual debt owed to B. F. Skinner and for highlighting the contributions that behavior analysis offers for an understanding of infant behavior and development. It is contended that the concept of reinforcement, although a powerful process in infant behavior and development, is incapable of explaining many of the findings of infant researchers, including those who rely on operant conditioning as their paradigm of choice. The concept of expectancy is suggested as an adjunct to reinforcement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of probability of reinforcement in models of choice.

A general account of choice behavior in animals, the cumulative effects model, has been proposed by D. Davis et al (see record 1993-28240-001). Its basic assumptions are that choice occurs in an all-or-none fashion for the response alternative with the highest probability of reinforcement and that the probability of reinforcement for each response alternative is calculated from the entire history of training (total number of reinforced responses/total number of reinforced and nonreinforced responses). The model's reliance on probability of reinforcement as the fundamental variable controlling choice behavior subjects the cumulative effects model to the same criticisms as have been directed toward other related models of choice, notably melioration theory. Several data sets show that the relative value of a response alternative is not predicted by the obtained probability of reinforcement associated with that alternative. Alternative approaches to choice theory are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Responding changes systematically within sessions during conditioning procedures

When the procedure is held constant within an experimental session, responding often changes systematically within that session. Many of these within-session changes in responding cannot be dismissed as learning curves or by-products of satiation. They have been observed in studies of positive reinforcement, avoidance, punishment, extinction, discrimination, delayed matching to sample, concept formation, maze and alley running, and laboratory analogues of foraging, as well as in the unconditioned substrates of conditioned behavior. When aversive stimuli are used, responding usually increases early in the session. When positive reinforcers are used, responding changes in a variety of ways, including increasing, decreasing, and bitonic functions. Both strong and minimal reinforcement procedures produce within-session decreases in positively reinforced behavior. Within-session changes in responding have substantial theoretical and methodological implications for research in conditioning.     

Academic expectations, attributed responsibility, and teachers' reinforcement behavior: A suggested integration of conflicting literatures.

Replies to W.-U. Meyer's (see record 1979-29550-001) criticisms of the methodology of the present authors' (see record 1978-08780-001) study of teacher performance expectations and reinforcement behavior. Several counter-arguments are presented, and an integrative interpretation of the conflicting feedback literature is offered. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Examination of reinforcement magnitude on the pharmacological disruption of fixed-ratio performance.

Behavioral momentum theory proposes that operant behavior is the product of two separable processes: its rate of occurrence and its resistance to change. Generally speaking, operant situations providing more densely spaced or greater magnitudes of reinforcement should be more resistant to disruption. Attempts to disrupt ongoing behavior by manipulating the availability of food or deprivation level typically have supported the predictions of behavioral momentum. Tests with pharmacological disruptors, however, have yielded mixed results. Most investigations of pharmacological disruption of operant behavior have evaluated momentum across situations that differ in rate of reinforcement. The present experiment was an attempt to systematically replicate prior work, but under conditions of differing reinforcement magnitudes. Pigeons were trained to key peck on a multiple fixed-ratio 30 schedule of food presentation, where different components programmed 2-, 4-, or 8-s access to grain. Resistance to rate-decreasing effects of drugs was evaluated with several compounds drawn from distinct pharmacological classes: chlordiazepoxide, cocaine, clonidine, haloperidol, morphine, and ethanol were tested. Additionally, disruption by prefeeding and extinction was examined. Generally, resistance to change by drug administration was not modulated by reinforcement magnitude. Prefeeding and extinction tests, however, replicated previous work, indicating that our procedure was sensitive to more common disruptors. The results give additional support to the notion that pharmacological disruptors may not behave in the manner predicted by behavioral momentum theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Academic expectations, attributed responsibility, and teachers' reinforcement behavior: A comment on Cooper and Baron, with some additional data.

Criticizes a study by H. M. Cooper and R. M. Baron (see record 1978-08780-001) in which they conclude that teachers' performance expectations were more potent predictors of their reinforcement behavior in class than were their attributions of responsibility. It is argued that this conclusion is questionable because of some methodological flaws in the study. Evidence that shows rather strong associations between teachers' attributions of responsibility and their reinforcement behavior is presented. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The kinetics of choice: An operant systems analysis.

The behaving organism and its environment constitute interacting elements of a feedback system. Starting with a kinetic model of the effects of reinforcement on preference and incorporating feedback functions describing the effects of responding on reinforcement rate, a systems analysis of concurrent reinforcement schedule situations was developed. Correct predictions were generated of both the form of the acquisition of preference and of asymptotic preference levels for choice between probabilistic reinforcement schedules (i.e., VI and VR). A kinetic model was then formulated at the level of switching behavior. All predictions at the molar (preference) level followed also from this molecular analysis. In addition, the switching model correctly predicted a constant sum of transition probabilities (local switching rates) and a decrease in overall switching rate as both preference strength and the difference between reinforcement rates increased. The present systems analysis is seen as being unique among recent theoretical efforts concerned with schedules of reinforcement in its ability to describe molecular as well as molar properties of both transition-state and steady-state behavior. (41 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)