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Cited by 257Decision-Making and Behavioral EconomicsBehavioral and Psychological StudiesNeural and Behavioral Psychology Studies

PROBABILISTICALLY REINFORCED CHOICE BEHAVIOR IN PIGEONS1

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Shimp, Charles P.·1966·Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior
DOI 10.1901/jeab.1966.9-443PMC PMC1338246
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Abstract

A single principle, "momentary maximizing", may account for much of a pigeon's steady-state behavior in both probability learning and concurrent variable interval experiments. The principle states that a pigeon tends to choose the alternative that momentarily has the higher probability of reinforcement. A successive discrimination procedure, which produced matching in an earlier experiment, produced here a tendency to maximize if training were adequately extended. Maximizing was produced also by other procedures, in which no reinforcing event was presented on some trials: one procedure did and two did not provide a bird with information about the availability of reinforcement on a key after an unreinforced response on the other key. The latter two procedures were analogous to concurrent variable interval schedules in two respects: the reinforcement probability on one key increased while a bird responded on the other key; and they produced matching. But sequential statistics suggested that matching resulted from momentary maximizing. Depending on the procedure, the tendency to maximize produced different relative frequencies of pecking a key for a fixed relative frequency of reinforcement. Computer simulation of maximizing behavior in several concurrent variable interval schedules produced matching and sequential statistics similar to those produced by a real bird.

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  • Empirical tests of the hypothesis that animals use trial counting to maximize reinforcement rate are equivocal, with evidence for and against the hypothesis.

    “Empirical tests of the hypothesis that animals use trial counting to maximize reinforcement rate are equivocal, with evidence for (Hinson & Staddon, 1983; Shimp, 1966; Silberberg et al., 1978) and against (Herrnstein, data published in de Villiers, 1977; Heyman, 1979; Nevin, 1969, 1979) the hypothesis.”

    From DYNAMIC RESPONSE-BY-RESPONSE MODELS OF MATCHING BEHAVIOR IN RHESUS MONKEYS (2005) · cites this paper as Shimp, 1966

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Authors
Shimp, C. P.
Affiliations
Brown University (US)
Corresponding author
Shimp, Charles P.
Venue
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior
Publisher
Wiley
Published
1966-07
Volume
9
Issue
4
Pages
443-455
ISSN
  • 0022-5002 (ISSN-L)
  • 1938-3711
DOI
10.1901/jeab.1966.9-443
PMC
PMC1338246
OpenAlex
W2087585530
Cited by
257
References
13
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 4 · 2012: 4
FWCI
3.54
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor, 17042 d)
Locations
  • Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › General Decision Sciences › Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Behavioral and Psychological Studies
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
Keywords
choice behavior, pigeons, probability learning, matching behavior, reinforcement probability, reinforcement frequency
MeSH terms
Animals, Birds, Computers, Discrimination Learning, Learning, Male, Probability Learning, Reinforcement, Psychology

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