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PERSISTENCE DURING EXTINCTION: EXAMINING THE EFFECTS OF CONTINUOUS AND INTERMITTENT REINFORCEMENT ON PROBLEM BEHAVIOR
Author(s) -
MacDonald Jacquelyn M.,
Ahearn William H.,
ParryCruwys Diana,
Bancroft Stacie,
Dube William V.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
journal of applied behavior analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1938-3703
pISSN - 0021-8855
DOI - 10.1002/jaba.3
Subject(s) - reinforcement , extinction (optical mineralogy) , psychology , persistence (discontinuity) , autism spectrum disorder , developmental psychology , context (archaeology) , autism , functional analysis , social psychology , paleontology , biochemistry , chemistry , geotechnical engineering , gene , engineering , biology
This study examined behavioral persistence during extinction following continuous or intermittent reinforcement in the context of an analogue functional analysis of problem behavior. Participants were 4 children who had been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder and who engaged in problem behavior maintained by social reinforcement. Experimental sessions included 4 successive 5‐min components: no social interaction, continuous or intermittent reinforcement for problem behavior (alternating across sessions), extinction, and no social interaction. All participants' problem behavior was more persistent during extinction following continuous reinforcement, suggesting that behavior during extinction was affected by the preceding schedule of reinforcement.