Keypecking as a Self-Control Response

Abstract

Self-control was analyzed in an operant conditioning experiment using pigeons as subjects. In past experiments, subjects were presented a brief stimulus such that a peck against a response key during the stimulus resulted in a small reinforcer, and not pecking during the stimulus resulted in a large reinforcer, delivered sometime later. Pecking the response key represented a lack of self-control; not keypecking represented self-control. Because evidence shows a stimulus that precedes a reinforcer can elicit keypecking, and possibly complicate the analysis of the self-control, we changed the self-control response. We made keypecking the response that led to the large reinforcer, and we made not keypecking the response that led to the small reinforcer. This change greatly improved self-control as compared to previous experiments. It also illustrated the fact that many elicited responses were probably present in previous self-control experiments.