Matching Law Visualization Tool

This Microsoft Excel tool permits the user to use drop-down menus to modulate either the generalized matching equation function or the single-alternative matching function (available as separate tabs in the spreadsheet. The tool is locked to prevent accidental modification of the template. However, advanced users can unlock the tool without a password to explore the hidden columns and better understand the mathematic relations.Herrnstein’s quantitative law of effect describes relative allocation of behavior as a function of relative rates of reinforcement. This robust relation has since been termed the “matching law” and is expressed in either a linear regression function for two or more behavior-reinforcement alternatives (i.e., generalized matching) or a hyperbolic function for one target behavior constrained by extraneous sources of reinforcement (i.e., single-alternative matching). While algebraically simple, the matching law remains an elusive principle to students of behavior analysis lacking requisite training in quantitative analyses. This simulation tool is intended to visually describe how manipulations of the parameters of the quantitative models modulate the matching relation. This tool should supplement readings on the conceptual and mathematical approaches to the matching law