Richard B. Powers

Choice and self-control in children: A test of Rachlin’s model

Rachlin and Green (1972) proposed a model which analyzed self control as a reversal of preference for two reward values in time. The present study investigated the utility of the model in the investigation of self-control in children. Two boys (ages 9-10) were exposed to a chain of events in which a left alternative (initial link) lead to a choice (terminal link) between a small, immediate reward (2 tokens) or a large. delaved reward (4 tokens delaved 4 sec). Equal preference was found for both left and right alternatives although once the left alternative had been selected, the immediate reward was chosen on a large percentage of the trials. However, as these choices were moved further into time, preference for the left alternative increased and the children chose the immediate reward almost exclusively. In addition, subjects spent a greater percentage of their daily tokens as time to the choice point increased. These results do not replicate Rachlin and Green’s findings with pigeons. However, the subjects did show a reversal of preference as time to the choice point was manipulated, suggesting the model’s utility in the investigation of self-control with humans.

Bonus Points in a Self-Paced Course Facilitates Exam-Taking

The effects of reinforcing students for starting to work early in a self-paced course were examined. In One section of an introductory psychology course, a graduated point system was used during a 5-week period to award bonus points for taking exams early in the quarter. Students in the control section never received bonus points. The Bonus group took more exams during the bonus period than the No Bonus group with a peak in Week 3. Examtaking peaked in the last week for the No Bonus group. Students in the Bonus group also tended to finish the course before those in the No Bonus condition. These results suggest that a system which reinforces early responding in self-paced courses can change typical work patterns, distribute the work load more evenly for the instructor, and cause more students to finish the course early.

Performance in a Self-Paced Course

Student performance in an individually-paced PSI course in introductory psychology is described. Students were required to complete thirty units of material by oral interviews and every third unit was followed by a written exam. The earlier a student started to work, the sooner he finished the course and more of those who started early completed the course than those who started later. Individual exam records showed that patterns of exam taking could not be characterized by any single mode. Fixed-ratio, fixed-interval, and pacing schedule patterns of responding were obtained. Most of the students who withdrew from the class did so after completing one of the first three exams and there was no history of exam failure associated with these students. Early finishers had a slightly more favorable attitude toward the course than late finishers. For students who indicated a change toward majoring or minoring in psychology, the change was greater for those who finished early. A major implication of this study is...

The Commons Game: Teaching Students about Social Dilemmas.

Abstract A simulation/game, the Commons Game, was designed to teach students that resources which are not owned, such as whales, are overexploited and eventually destroyed. The heart of the game is a payoff matrix that gradually improves if the players choose a predominantly cooperative strategy or gradually grows worse if they choose a predominantly exploitive strategy. Student evaluations of the game across several quarters were compared to evaluations of the simulation/game, BaFa BaFa, a very successful cross-cultural exercise. Both simulations were rated highly on most of the sixteen-item survey, with ratings on three items favoring BaFa BaFa and ratings on another three favoring the Commons Game. Student comments revealed that the game provided them with an affective understanding of this social dilemma and motivated them to discuss possible solutions to it.

Generalization From a Commons-Dilemma Game: The Effects of a Fine Option, Information, and Communication on Cooperation and Defection

(Dawes, 1980; Edney, 1980, Edney and Harper, 1978; Linder, 1982) show that considerable progress has been made in understanding the variables that control cooperation and defection in the laboratory. While these simulations are a marked improvement over the two-person Prisoner’s Dilemma game for studying conflict resolution in resource management problems, they vary in ways that hinder comparisons between studies. In some

Errorless Training of a Visual Discrimination in Preschool Children

This experiment sought to determine the feasibility of Terrace’s “errorless” discrimination technique in training children to make a fine color discrimination. Of five Ss (3½ to 5 years), three were trained with traditional discrimination techniques and two were trained utilizing Terrace’s techniques. No child in the traditional group made the discrimination. Both Ss in the errorless condition were successful in making the discrimination and made the transition to the final performance with very few errors.

The Self-Recording of Weights and Bites in the Treatment of Obesity

The effects of self-recording of weight and bites on subsequent weight was assessed using a single-subject design. Six university students (1 male and 5 female) were exposed to a similar sequence of conditions which included: (a) weekly weigh-ins, (b) self-recording of daily weights, (c) control for observation, (d) self-recording of bites, and (e) a reversal condition in which subjects stopped recording bites but continued recording weights and meeting for weekly weigh-ins. No significant weight reductions occurred in conjunction with weekly weigh-ins, self-recording of daily weights, or the control for observation. Five of the six subjects lost more than two pounds while recording bites, monitoring daily weights, and meeting for weekly weigh-ins. During reversal, five of the six subjects maintained the weight loss over the 2- to 4-week condition. Variables related to the interaction between self-recording of bites and eating were suggested as an explanation for the results.

How should I spend my

The character of NASAGA is described through a personal history. Some persistent problems with the organization and the discipline of simulation and gaming are then detailed. A fantasy is described in which a large sum of money is left to the organization so that it could establish a simulation and gaming chair at a major university, internships, scholarships, and so forth. Suppose these well-intentioned actions caused NASAGAs membership to grow to 10,000? What are the implications for NASAGAs character if it grew this large? How should the field and NASAGA handle future growth in its next 25 years?