What type of control influences behavior related to the availability of an effective reinforcer?

The concept that influences behavior related to the availability of an effective reinforcer is best captured by motivating operations. Motivating operations refer to environmental events that affect the effectiveness of a reinforcer and can alter the frequency of behaviors that have previously been reinforced by that particular stimulus. For instance, if an individual is deprived of a specific reinforcer, such as food, their desire for food increases, which subsequently makes them more likely to engage in behaviors that will lead to the acquisition of that food.

Discriminative stimuli serve a different function; they signal the availability of a reinforcer contingent upon a specific behavior. While they indicate that a particular behavior will lead to a specific outcome, they do not directly influence the motivation for that outcome. In contrast, both unconditioned and conditioned reinforcers are types of reinforcers themselves, where unconditioned reinforcers are naturally reinforcing (like food or water), and conditioned reinforcers acquire their value through association with unconditioned reinforcers.

In essence, the question is centered on the motivational aspects of behavior, making motivating operations the correct answer as they dictate how highly valued a reinforcer is, thereby influencing behavior.