Reinforcer value moderates response magnitude and persistence during extinction: A randomized trial

Abstract

Extinction bursts, or temporary increases in rates and intensities of behavior during extinction, can preclude the inclusion of extinction in intervention packages meant to suppress severe challenging behavior. To identify underlying behavioral mechanisms responsible for response persistence and bursting, 69 adults with developmental disabilities completed a low-stakes translational investigation employing a 2 × 2 factorial, crossed, and randomized matched blocks design, with batched randomization logic. In each of the four test groups, we made distinct antecedent manipulations with two value parameters commonly studied through behavioral economics (i.e., demand intensity, P_max) and evaluated the extent to which each of these manipulations influenced target responding during extinction. Although we found statistically significant differences attributable to both parameters, variations in reinforcer consumption relative to demand intensity were most influential across all dependent variables. This outcome implicates consumption relative to demand intensity as both a mitigating and exacerbating preextinction factor that influences the prevalence of adverse collateral extinction effects (e.g., bursts).