
Episode 297 - Matching Law
01/08/25 • 76 min
1 Listener
Despite being a cornerstone of the science of behavior, we’ve gone nearly 300 episodes without ever really delving into the details of the matching law. Maybe it’s because it involves too many equations. Maybe it’s because a lot of the research seems to focus exclusively on choice in basketball shots. In any case we’re getting every up to speed on the basics of the matching law and its importance in studying choice. Plus, Rob has spicy hot takes. Sweet sassy mo-lassy!
This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU.
Articles discussed this episode:
Reed, D.D. & Kaplan, B.A. (2011). The matching law: A tutorial for practitioners. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 4, 15-24. doi: 10.1007/BF03391780
Alferink, L.A., Critchfield, T.S., Hitt, J.L., & Higgins, W.J. (2009). Generality of the matching law as a descriptor of shot selection in basketball. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 42, 595-608. doi: 10.1901/jaba.2009.42-595
Morris, S.L. & Vollmer, T.R. (2022). The matching law provides a quantitative description of social time allocation in children with autism. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 55, 934-957. doi: 10.1002/jaba.934
If you're interested in ordering CEs for listening to this episode, click here to go to the store page. You'll need to enter your name, BCBA #, and the two episode secret code words to complete the purchase. Email us at [email protected] for further assistance.
Despite being a cornerstone of the science of behavior, we’ve gone nearly 300 episodes without ever really delving into the details of the matching law. Maybe it’s because it involves too many equations. Maybe it’s because a lot of the research seems to focus exclusively on choice in basketball shots. In any case we’re getting every up to speed on the basics of the matching law and its importance in studying choice. Plus, Rob has spicy hot takes. Sweet sassy mo-lassy!
This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU.
Articles discussed this episode:
Reed, D.D. & Kaplan, B.A. (2011). The matching law: A tutorial for practitioners. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 4, 15-24. doi: 10.1007/BF03391780
Alferink, L.A., Critchfield, T.S., Hitt, J.L., & Higgins, W.J. (2009). Generality of the matching law as a descriptor of shot selection in basketball. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 42, 595-608. doi: 10.1901/jaba.2009.42-595
Morris, S.L. & Vollmer, T.R. (2022). The matching law provides a quantitative description of social time allocation in children with autism. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 55, 934-957. doi: 10.1002/jaba.934
If you're interested in ordering CEs for listening to this episode, click here to go to the store page. You'll need to enter your name, BCBA #, and the two episode secret code words to complete the purchase. Email us at [email protected] for further assistance.
Previous Episode

PREVIEW - The Science of Consequences Book Club
Enjoy a short preview of our latest full-length Book Club episode. Want to hear the whole thing and get 2.5 CEs for FREE? Subscribe to our Patreon today at the premium $10+ levels for that plus other bonuses!
As a follow-up from our episode on storytelling, we our Winter 2024 Book Club explored Dr. Susan Schneider’s 2012 opus, The Science of Consequences, as an example of taking the hugely important concept of learning through consequences and making it understandable to the wider public. But hey, while she was at it, why not explain how consequences impact evolution, or gene expression, or social improvement strategies. And add multiple examples of how consequences work in labs and the natural environment across a wide range of human and non-human species. And make it fun to read!
But before our crack Book Club squad dives into the nitty gritty of the content, we had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Schneider herself to ask how she managed to take millions of years of the effects of consequences and pack it into a 300+ page book as well as how her study of consequences informs her current work as a climate change policy advocate.
This full version of this episode is available for 2.5 LEARNING CEUs.
Content discussed in this episode:
Next Episode

Episode 298 - Auld Bag Syne (Winter 2025 Grab Bag)
VERSE
Should old research articles be forgot,
and never brought to ABA podcasts?
Should old research articles be forgot,
and auld bag syne?
CHORUS
For auld bag syne, my BCBAs,
for auld bag syne,
we’ll take a cup of dissemination yet,
for auld bag syne.
This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU.
Articles discussed this episode:
Graham, S., Keenan, M., & Dillenburger, K. (2024). All for one and one for all: The good inclusion game. Behavioral Interventions. doi: 10.1002/bin.2048
Migan-Gandonou Horr, J. & Campos, C. (2024). Effects of a technology‐based self‐management intervention on social media use in a college student. Behavior Analysis in Practice. doi: 10.1007/s40617-024-00977-3
Schmidt, J., Krantz, J., King, H., Vetter, J., & Maruska, C. (2024). Using a brief experimental analysis for writing speed intervention identification. Behavioral Interventions, 39. doi: 10.1002/bin.2019
If you're interested in ordering CEs for listening to this episode, click here to go to the store page. You'll need to enter your name, BCBA #, and the two episode secret code words to complete the purchase. Email us at [email protected] for further assistance.
If you like this episode you’ll love
Episode Comments
Generate a badge
Get a badge for your website that links back to this episode
<a href="https://goodpods.com/podcasts/aba-inside-track-37022/episode-297-matching-law-81349087"> <img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/goodpods-images-bucket/badges/generic-badge-1.svg" alt="listen to episode 297 - matching law on goodpods" style="width: 225px" /> </a>
Copy