Choice in a "self-control" paradigm: effects of a fading procedure.
Gradually stretching wait time turns impulsive picks into self-control choices.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Hamilton et al. (1978) worked with pigeons in a lab.
The birds chose between a small food pellet right away or a bigger pellet after a wait.
The team slowly stretched the wait time for the big reward.
They wanted to see if the birds would learn to pick the larger, later option.
What they found
The birds that got the fading steps shifted their pecks to the big delayed side.
Control birds kept picking the fast, small snack.
Even when the rules flipped, some faded birds stayed with the self-control key.
How this fits with other research
Vessells et al. (2018) copied the fading idea with kids.
They showed that adding a light signal plus fading quadrupled the seconds children would wait for a bigger prize.
Clarke et al. (2003) also stretched delay, but gave adults toys to use while they waited.
All three studies line up: start big and immediate, then grow the wait in baby steps.
Palya (1985) used the same fading logic to teach pigeons color cues, proving the method works for many skills.
Why it matters
You can borrow this pigeon trick for your clients.
First let them earn the big reinforcer right away.
Then add one second, then two, while keeping praise flowing.
Pair the wait with a signal or a toy to fill the gap.
The child gets practice at waiting without tears, and you build real self-control.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Pigeons chose between an immediate 2-second reinforcer (access to grain) and a 6-second reinforcer delayed 6 seconds. The four pigeons in the control group were exposed to this condition initially. The four experimental subjects first received a condition where both reinforcers were delayed 6 seconds. The small reinforcer delay was then gradually reduced to zero over more than 11,000 trials. Control subjects almost never chose the large delayed reinforcer. Experimental subjects chose the large delayed reinforcer significantly more often. Two experimental subjects showed preference for the large reinforcer even when the consequences for pecking the two keys were switched. The results indicate that fading procedures can lead to increased "self-control" in pigeons in a choice between a large delayed reinforcer and a small immediate reinforcer.
Journal of the experimental analysis of behavior, 1978 · doi:10.1901/jeab.1978.30-11