Humans' Sensitivity to Variation in Reinforcer Amount: Effects of the Method of Reinforcer Delivery
Year: 1990
Type: article
Abstract: Two experiments examined human subjects' sensitivity to variation in reinforcer amount under different methods of reinforcer delivery. Subjects chose between schedules varying in terms of amount and/or delay of reinforcement, the reinforcer being points exchangeable for money. In Experiment 1, reinforcer amount was manipulated by varying the monetary value of the points across conditions while the number of seconds of access to a consummatory response remained constant. Choice was strongly sensitive to reinforcer amount and indicative of self-control, as in previous experiments. In Experiment 2, reinforcer amount was manipulated by automatically delivering different numbers of points during the amount period, and the consummatory response was eliminated. Sensitivity to variation in reinforcer amount was significantly lower than in Experiment 1. Furthermore, the subjects in Experiment 2 exhibited significantly less self-control than did the subjects in Experiment 1. Humans' sensitivity to variation in reinforcer amount appears to be affected by factors that enhance the discrimi-nability of the consequences of responding.
Authors: George R. King, A. W. Logue
Institution: Stony Brook University
Language: English
Subfield: General Decision Sciences
Field: Decision Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2118550938