Choice in transition: A comparison of melioration and the kinetic model.
The kinetic model beats melioration at mapping how fast preference moves when schedules change.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Lincoln et al. (1988) watched pigeons choose between two keys during schedule switches.
The birds started on equal VI VI schedules, then the team shifted to new ratios.
They compared two math models: melioration and the newer kinetic model.
What they found
The kinetic model guessed the birds’ preference path better than melioration.
Preference settled faster and stayed steadier than the older model said it would.
How this fits with other research
Bailey et al. (1990) ran the same switch two years later. They showed bigger ratio jumps make preference lock in even quicker, building on the kinetic story.
Najdowski et al. (2003) flipped ratios daily and still saw next-session resets. This extends the 1988 finding: pigeons can retune fast, not just once.
Bell et al. (2017) used quickly changing VI VR mixes. Time on each key, not peck speed, drove choice, matching the kinetic focus on ‘time allocation’ during transitions.
Why it matters
If you shift reinforcement odds for a client, expect behavior to track the new ratio within minutes, not hours. Use brief probes and watch time spent, not just response count, to see when preference has truly flipped.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Transition-state choice behavior of pigeons was examined in two experiments designed to test predictions of melioration and the kinetic model. Both experiments began with an initial training condition during which subjects were maintained on concurrent variable-interval schedules. In Experiment 1, subjects were then exposed to concurrent variable-ratio schedules, whereas in Experiment 2, subjects were then exposed to concurrent extinction. Contrary to the predictions of melioration, but consistent with the kinetic model, acquisition of preference on concurrent variable-ratio schedules followed a negatively accelerated logistic trajectory, and preference remained stable in concurrent extinction. Predictions made by the kinetic model concerning rates of switching between alternatives were also supported.
Journal of the experimental analysis of behavior, 1988 · doi:10.1901/jeab.1988.49-291