Question

please check my answer thanks for your help :)

During extinction, an instrumenatl behavior may initially increase as the result of what ?


A failure of the dog to obey the new instruction
B. an extinction burst
C. temorary defiance
D. punishment resistance

I said A

Answer 1

To my knowledge, instrumental behavior does <I>not</I> increase during extinction. Extinction is the process of not reinforcing the previously learned response. The response is followed by neither reinforcement nor punishment.

However, if behaviors have been previously reinforced on a random (variable interval or variable response) schedule, they will be much harder to bring to extinction.

Is there some error in the way the question is stated?

I hope this helps. Thanks for asking.

Answer 2

As an aside, the only thing I know that might even approach what you seem to be describing is spontaneous recovery. However, this is not an "initial" increase.

Once the response has been extinguished, after a rest, the response might temporarily occur again — spontaneous recovery. Even so, it is nowhere near the intensity/frequency of the original response.

I hope this helps a little more. Thanks for asking.

Answer 3

The answer is B, an extinction burst.