Williams, W. A., & Fantino, E. (1996).
Response-dependent prechoice effects on foraging-related choice.
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior,
65, 619-641.
Three experiments explored the influence of prechoice events on
pigeons' preference. In two of three studies, a fixed-interval
200-second prechoice period preceded the initial links of a
concurrent chain in which outcomes differed either (a) in terms
of the delay to food or (b) in terms of amount of food and delay
to food. In Experiment 3, the prechoice period preceded the
initial links that provided a choice between a small single food
presentation and two identical, more delayed food presentations.
In all three cases, obtained choice proportions did not vary as a
function of prechoice duration. These results suggest that a
local-contextual view adequately describes the foraging context;
they also have implications for the appropriate formulation of
the delay-reduction theory of conditioned reinforcement and
rate-maximizing views of optimal foraging theory.
Key words: delay-reduction theory, rate maximization, optimal
foraging theory, contextual choice, concurrent chains, key peck,
pigeons