The word choice in everyday language describes the selection of some actions, events, or activities over other possible ones. This meaning carries over to behavior analysis, where in the laboratory choices are made between alternative contingencies of reinforcement or punishment and in the practice of behavior analysis between similar conditions in the context of treatment. Those concerned with the conceptual analysis of behavior ask questions about determinism, the nature of so-called voluntary behavior, and the limits of prediction and control as they relate to choices. Each of these points of view are represented in the articles comprising this special issue of Operants on the topic of “Choice.”
Behavior analysts constantly are confronted by questions of choice. In the laboratory, even responding on a single reinforcement schedule has been construed as one involving a choice between the response that produces the programmed reinforcer and other potential sources of reinforcement in the operant chamber. Choices are important in applied behavior analysis in providing greater welfare-oriented opportunities for human and nonhuman clients, as well as assessing and selecting potential reinforcers, although a preference for one item or activity or another may be just that and does not necessarily imply that the preferred item will function as reinforcer in a different situation. Several of the papers in this issue address the question of providing therapeutic choices to clients and their caregivers and activity choices to nonhuman animals for which we are responsible.
Mick Herron, author of the novels behind the recently popular British television series, Slow Horses, observed that “it was striking how often, in retrospect, choice seemed not to have been choices at all but simply a matter of taking one step after another.” The observation is interesting because it suggests the underlying determinism that controls all choices but also the subtleness of that determinism. Skinner spoke of the “free” operant, but he did not mean that the organism was the agent of its actions, selecting what it wanted to do and when it wanted to do it without constraint. His use of the term was procedural, contrasting his method of using unrestrained animals in the relatively open-spaced operant chamber to the then-more- conventional Pavlovian procedure of restraint or discrete trials (e.g., picking up and reintroducing a rat to a maze). Going beyond freedom and dignity for Skinner meant coming to an understanding of what choice meant and how choice could be used to the advantage of humankind.
Question surrounding all of the activities that are labeled choices is the nature of the choices offered and the control that is transferred to the recipient of those choices. Several of the articles make the point that a choice is only really a choice if it is a “true” or “genuine” choice, which is a valid point, but also one that is difficult to operationalize practically or conceptually. Furthermore, true choices must be relative and not absolute, primarily because choices are only possible among available activities, and available activities are always a subset of all possible activities. Some of the articles explore the advantages of providing choices for both human and nonhuman companion and zoo animal populations. All point to the central role of choice in behavior-analytic research, conceptual analysis, and treatment. This special issue therefore bridges a gap between theoretical, experimental, and applied considerations when giving individuals choices. The unifying theme is a behavior-analytic perspective on the concept and application of choice. We are grateful to the authors of these articles for lending their expertise to this special issue. We believe readers will find the authors’ ideas valuable in both thinking about and providing greater options for their persons or animals of interest.
Eduardo Fernandez, Andy Lattal,
Guest Editors
VIEW/DOWNLOAD FULL PDF HERE, OR BROWSE FEATURED ARTICLES BELOW:
- Science Corner (Julie Vargas)
- Choice, Induction, and Covariance: The Molar View of Behavior
- Details Matter: The Object of Inquiry Problem
- Why is choice research important to behavior analysis?
- The Peculiar, Potential Relation Between Choosing to Do Hard Things and Having the Choice in the First Place
