A reinterpretation of extinction in discriminated avoidance

Abstract

Accepting escape from the warning signal and/or avoidance of shock as the source of reinforcement for the discriminated avoidance response, extinction is redefined in terms of withholding these effects following the response. The effects of warning intervals of 5, 10, and 20 sec. on the redefined extinction procedure were reported, and rapid reliable decreases in responding were found for all 30 Sprague-Dawley albino rats, similar to positive reinforcement studies. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)