Contingency and choice: The implications of matching theory for classroom instruction

This paper describes a mathematical account of behavior known as matching theory. Matching theory evolved out of basic operant research and assumes that individuals can engage in a variety of behaviors at any moment, but they choose one to the exclusion of others. According to the matching equation, choices in behavior match the relative amount of reinforcement provided for each alternative. Although the principles of matching theory have proven useful in developing novel treatment strategies, few data exist validating the matching equation in natural human environments. Recent applications of matching theory to children's classroom behavior are described, and the implications of matching theory for classroom management and effective teaching are discussed.     

What masks utrocular discrimination

Utrocular discrimination, the ability to judge which eye has received monocular stimulation, was studied under conditions designed to reduce the salience of the cue mediating this discrimination. In one series of experiments, these conditions involved reducing the likelihood of motor command signals, overwhelming the motor command centers, and triggering motor command signals for both eyes. Those results indicate that utrocular discrimination is not mediated by ocular movements or command signals. In a second series of experiments, a visual masking paradigrn was used. A monocular test grating appeared superimposed upon a background of binocular masking noise, which was presented either simultaneously with the target or at some interval preceding or following the target (asynchronous masking). When presented simultaneously, the binocular masking noise interfered with utrocular performance, but only when the noise contained spatial frequencies near the test frequency. Masking functions obtained under conditions of asynchronous masking indicated that the time course of the forward and backward masking changed with spatial frequency. Finally, a sustained masking pattern that was ineffective in reducing utrocular performance could be made effective by pulsing the mask simultaneously with the target. Taken together, these results implicate a transient response to the target onset as a critical factor in generating the cue for successful utrocular discrimination. This conclusion may account for the fact that utrocular discrimination falls off for normal observers as the spatial frequency of the target grating increases above 4 cycles/deg.     

The beneficial effects of additional task load, positive affect, and instruction on the attentional blink

The attentional blink reflects the impaired ability to identify the 2nd of 2 targets presented in close succession--a phenomenon that is generally thought to reflect a fundamental cognitive limitation. However, the fundamental nature of this impairment has recently been called into question by the counterintuitive finding that task-irrelevant mental activity improves attentional blink performance (C. N. L. Olivers & S. Nieuwenhuis, 2005). The present study found a reduced attentional blink when participants concurrently performed an additional memory task, viewed pictures of positive affective content, or were instructed to focus less on the task. These findings support the hypothesis that the attentional blink is due to an overinvestment of attentional resources in stimulus processing, a suboptimal processing mode that can be counteracted by manipulations promoting divided attention.     

The generalized matching law in elite sport competition: football play calling as operant choice

A mathematical model of operant choice, the generalized matching law was used to analyze play-calling data from the 2004 National Football League season. In all analyses, the relative ratio of passing to rushing plays was examined as a function of the relative ratio of reinforcement, defined as yards gained, from passing versus rushing. Different analyses focused on season-aggregate data for the league as a whole, game-by-game data for the league as a whole, and game-by-game data for individual teams. In all analyses except those for a few individual teams, the generalized matching law accounted for a majority of variance in play calling. The typical play-calling pattern reflected undermatching (suggesting imperfect sensitivity of play calling to yardage-gained reinforcers) and a bias for calling rushing plays. Bias was found to be a function of both the relative risk of turnovers and the relative variability in yards gained associated with passing versus rushing plays. The external validity of the matching analyses was supported by significant correlations between parameters of the generalized matching law and team success on offense and season winning percentage. These results illustrate the broad applicability of the generalized matching law to problems outside of the laboratory.     

Windows into nothingness: terror management, meaninglessness, and negative reactions to modern art

Why do people dislike art that they find meaningless? According to terror management theory, maintaining a basic meaningful view of reality is a key prerequisite for managing concerns about mortality. Therefore, mortality salience should decrease liking for apparently meaningless art, particularly among those predisposed to unambiguous knowledge. Accordingly, mortality salience diminished affection for modern art in Study 1, and this effect was shown in Study 2 to be specific to individuals with a high personal need for structure (PNS). In Studies 3 and 4, mortality salient high-PNS participants disliked modern art unless it was imbued with meaning, either by means of a title or a personal frame of reference induction. Discussion focused on the roles of meaninglessness, PNS, and art in terror management.     

Reweighting sequential effects across different distributions of foreperiods: segregating elementary contributions to nonspecific preparation

In the study of nonspecific preparation, the response time (RT) to an imperative stimulus is analyzed as a function of the foreperiod (FP), the interval between a warning stimulus and the imperative stimulus. When FP is varied within blocks of trials, a downward sloping FP-RT function is usually observed. The slope of this function depends on the distribution of FPs (the more negative the skewness, the steeper the slope) and on intertrial sequences of FP (the longer the FP on the preceding trial, the steeper the slope). Because these determinants are confounded, we examined whether FP-RT functions, observed under three different FP distributions (i.e., uniform, exponential, and peaked) can be predicted, one from the other, by reweighting sequential effects. It turned out that reweighting explained very little variance of the difference between the FP-RT functions, suggesting a dominant role of temporal orienting strategies.