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Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior logoLink to Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior
. 1971 Mar;15(2):249–251. doi: 10.1901/jeab.1971.15-249

On the tautology of the matching law1

Howard Rachlin
PMCID: PMC1333811  PMID: 16811511

Abstract

The generalized matching law, that organisms divide their time between alternatives in proportion to the value of the reinforcement consequent on the choice, is derivable from the assumption that an organism choosing between alternatives is under no constraints except those the contingencies of reinforcement impose. Hence, the law is not subject to empirical test. Its value lies in its simple codification of assumptions underlying choice experiments.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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