Scaling pigeons' choice of feeds: bigger is better.

Researchers let pigeons choose between different grains and pellets. They measured which food the birds picked most often.

They used Thurstone scaling, a way to turn choices into a ranked list. Then they checked if bigger pieces always scored higher.

Bigger feed almost always topped the scale. The fit got even tighter when the math included Weber's law, the idea that difference has to be a percent, not a fixed amount.

In plain words, pigeons act like size matters, and the rule works best when you think in ratios.

Baruni et al. (2025) took the same scaling idea to humans on treadmills. High-preference music, not food size, controlled walking speed, showing the method travels across species and reinforcers.

Johnson et al. (1991) found rats care more about grams-per-minute than pellet size. Together the papers tell us both rate and magnitude set value; you need to test which one your client weighs heaviest.

Bland et al. (2018) showed pigeons chase local rates even when it hurts overall payoff. Pair that with R et al.'s size effect and you see choice is pulled by multiple threads at once.

When you next run a preference assessment, test size, rate, and type separately. A child might pick big crackers over small raisins even if the raisins come faster. Rank options with a quick paired-choice scan, then double-check under Weber-style ratios. You could find one simple dimension that doubles the power of your reinforcement plan.