UNDERMATCHING AND OVERMATCHING AS DEVIATIONS FROM THE MATCHING LAW

Abstract

A model of performance under concurrent variable‐interval reinforcement schedules that takes as its starting point the hypothetical “burst” structure of operant responding is presented. Undermatching and overmatching are derived from two separate, and opposing, tendencies. The first is a tendency to allocate a certain proportion of response bursts randomly to a response alternative without regard for the rate of reinforcement it provides, others being allocated according to the simple matching law. This produces undermatching. The second is a tendency to prolong response bursts that have a high probability of initiation relative to those for which initiation probability is lower. This process produces overmatching. A model embodying both tendencies predicts (1) that undermatching will be more common than overmatching, (2) that overmatching, when it occurs, will tend to be of limited extent. Both predictions are consistent with available data. The model thus accounts for undermatching and overmatching deviations from the matching law in terms of additional processes added on to behavior allocation obeying the simple matching relation. Such a model thus enables processes that have been hypothesized to underlie matching, such as some type of reinforcement rate or probability optimization, to remain as explanatory mechanisms even though the simple matching law may not generally be obeyed.