WHEN IS A PATTERN A PATTERN

Rachlin argues that according to ''teleological'' behaviorism self-con trol is evident in instances where an act is contrasted with an elemen t of a temporally extended behavioral pattern. A strength of the argum ent is that it incorporates an important role for temporally extended context in identifying self-control. Weaknesses of this view-point are that it de-emphasizes the identification of manipulable controlling v ariables in defining and accounting for the origins of patterns.