Sub-optimal choice by pigeons: Failure to support the Allais paradox

Choice under Uncertainty; ‘Allais Paradox’ and its Paradoxical Implication

Human attitude towards risk is mixed. However, looking at the persuasive argument of diminishing marginal utility of wealth, academia has adopted risk aversion as the norm. Inculcating risk aversion, expected utility hypothesis (EUH) is used to rank risky options. ‘Allais paradox’ contradicted EUH but promoted the conviction of risk aversion intuitively on the basis of certainty effect. Most of...

Allais paradox pdf

Learning in the Allais paradox

Whereas both the Allais paradox, the first empirical challenge of the classical rationality assumptions, and learning have been the focus of many experimental investigations, no experimental study exists today into learning in the pure context of the Allais paradox. This paper presents such a study. We find that choices converge to expected utility maximization if subjects are given the opportu...

Suboptimal choice behavior by pigeons.

Contrary to the law of effect and optimal foraging theory, pigeons show suboptimal choice behavior by choosing an alternative that provides 20% reinforcement over another that provides 50% reinforcement. They choose the 20% reinforcement alternative--in which 20% of the time, that choice results in a stimulus that always predicts reinforcement, and 80% of the time, it results in another stimulu...

Maladaptive choice behaviour by pigeons: an animal analogue and possible mechanism for gambling (sub-optimal human decision-making behaviour).

Consistent with human gambling behaviour but contrary to optimal foraging theory, pigeons showed maladaptive choice behaviour in experiment 1 by choosing an alternative that provided on average two food pellets over an alternative that provided a certain three food pellets. On 20 per cent of the trials, choice of the two-pellet alternative resulted in a stimulus that always predicted ten food p...