ABSTRACT
Economics is the study of the allocation of scarce resources by individuals and societies. Concurrent schedules can be considered “economic” in that behavior (a scarce resource) is being allocated as a function of different variables. Behavioral economics (cf., Bickel, Green, & Vuchinich, 1995; Francisco, Madden, & Borrero, 2009) is the name of a developing research area empirically investigating economic concepts such as elasticity of demand (i.e., the extent to which individual income, the price of an object, deprivation of the object, or availability of a suitable substitute affects the likelihood of its purchase). For example, Madden and Bickel (1999) found that smokers were heavily influenced by both deprivation and cost. Those deprived for 5 to 6 hours were willing to work harder to puff cigarettes than those who were not deprived even when cost was increased. Increasing the cost, however, substantially reduced smoking. Findings such as these have important implications and applications with respect to encouraging and discouraging behaviors. Murphy and his colleagues published a series of articles based upon a behavioral economic analysis of college student drinking (Murphy, Barnett, & Colby, 2006; Murphy, Correia, & Barnett, 2007; Murphy, Correia, Colby, & Vuchinich, 2005). The magnitude of the college
drinking problem is exacerbated by the convenience and relatively low cost of alcohol on college campuses. The recommendations based on the studies were to increase the cost of alcoholic beverages and to discourage drinking by scheduling morning classes on Fridays. It was also suggested that the range of substitute activities not involving alcohol be increased on campuses. These could include social events as well as academic, career, and service opportunities.
