Behavioral Economics

Abstract

Economics, like behavioral psychology, is a science of behavior, albeit highly organized human behavior. The value of economic concepts for behavioral psychology rests on (1) their empirical validity when tested in the laboratory with individual subjects and (2) their uniqueness when compared to established behavioral concepts. Several fundamental concepts are introduced and illustrated by reference to experimental data: open and closed economies, elastic and inelastic demand, and substitution versus complementarity. Changes in absolute response rate are analyzed in relation to elasticity and intensity of demand. The economic concepts of substitution and complementarity are related to traditional behavioral studies of choice and to the matching relation. The economic approach has many implications for the future of behavioral research and theory. In general, economic concepts are grounded on a dynamic view of reinforcement. The closed-economy methodology extends the generality of behavioral principles to situations in which response rate and obtained rate of reinforcement are interdependent. Analysis of results in terms of elasticity and intensity of demand promises to provide a more direct method for characterizing the effects of "motivational" variables. Future studies of choice should arrange heterogeneous reinforcers with varying elasticities, use closed economies, and modulate scarcity or income. The economic analysis can be extended to the study of performances that involve subtle discriminations or skilled movements that vary in accuracy or quality as opposed to rate or quantity, and thus permit examination of time/accuracy trade-offs.

Food demand functions in mice

“…In this analysis, n is equivalent to the break point of the PR within each meal. The FR values were adopted based on literature in rats (eg Bauman 1991;Hursh 1984), but with the caveat that weight losses in excess of 15% are not allowed by our IACUC. Thus, the range studied was not designed to produce a large drop in demand.…”

“…Demand functions that have been reported for rats (e.g., Bauman, 1991;Hursh, 1984;Hursh, Raslear, Shurtleff, Bauman, & Simmons, 1988), as well as other species, all have manipulated the unit price of food pellets. These studies have used open or closed economies; operationally, these often translate into short sessions or continuous access, respectively.…”

The effect of chewing gum on tobacco withdrawal

“…Since the early 1970's behavioral economic theory has provided a useful conceptualization for analyzing behavior (Hursh, 1984). One such conceptualization has been borrowed from the area of microeconomics called consumer demand theory which looks at the relationship between the price of a consumer good and the demand for that consumer good.…”

Feeding behavior, obesity, and neuroeconomics

“…The discipline that has become known as behavioral economics has its roots in the law of demand which states that the consumption of or demand for a commodity decreases in a mathematically defined manner as its unit price increases [5,6]. In this usage, consumption is synonymous with acquisition or purchase and may apply to commodities as diverse as automobiles, clothes, or food.…”