Effects of Pre-Trial Response Requirements on Self-Control Choices by Rats and Pigeons

Autor/in	Mazur, James E.
Titel	Effects of Pre-Trial Response Requirements on Self-Control Choices by Rats and Pigeons
Quelle	In: Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 97 (2012) 2, S.215-230 (16 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0022-5002
Schlagwörter	Reinforcement; Animal Behavior; Research; Animals; Self Control; Responses; Delay of Gratification; Behavioral Science Research; Food; Experimental Psychology + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Positive Verstärkung; Tierverhalten; Forschung; Animal; Tier; Tiere; Selbstbeherrschung; Lebensmittel; Experimentelle Psychologie
Abstract	Parallel experiments with rats and pigeons examined whether the size of a pre-trial ratio requirement would affect choices in a self-control situation. In different conditions, either 1 response or 40 responses were required before each trial. In the first half of each experiment, an adjusting-ratio schedule was used, in which subjects could choose a fixed-ratio schedule leading to a small reinforcer, or an adjusting-ratio schedule leading to a larger reinforcer. The size of the adjusting ratio requirement was increased and decreased over trials based on the subject's responses, in order to estimate an indifference point--a ratio at which the two alternatives were chosen about equally often. The second half of each experiment used an adjusting-delay procedure--fixed and adjusting delays to the small and large reinforcers were used instead of ratio requirements. In some conditions, particularly with the reinforcer delays, the rats had consistently longer adjusting delays with the larger pre-trial ratios, reflecting a greater tendency to choose the larger, delayed reinforcer when more responding was required to reach the choice point. No consistent effects of the pre-trial ratio were found for the pigeons in any of the conditions. These results may indicate that rats are more sensitive to the long-term reinforcement rates of the two alternatives, or they may result from a shallower temporal discounting rate for rats than for pigeons, a difference that has been observed in previous studies. (Contains 2 tables and 4 figures.) (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior. Available from: Indiana University Department of Psychology. Bloomington, IN 47405-1301. Tel: 812-334-0395; FAX: 812-855-4691; e-mail: jeab@indiana.edu; Web site: http://seab.envmed.rochester.edu/jeab/index.html
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10