Sensory Extinction
Also called: extinction of automatically reinforced behavior
Definition
Extinction applied to behavior maintained by automatic reinforcement: the sensory consequence the behavior produces is masked or removed so that the behavior no longer produces it — padding a surface, changing a material. Because the reinforcer is not delivered by a person, this is the only way to withhold it, and it is often hard to do completely.
In plain language
When a behavior is kept going by how it feels or sounds, the plan changes things so it no longer produces that feeling or sound.
Example
A learner who flicks a light switch for the clicking sound finds the switch has been replaced with a silent one.
Not sensory extinction
A task that no longer goes away when the learner protests. That is escape extinction.
Commonly confused with
See also
Written from
- lerman-iwata-1996
Written from Lerman and Iwata (1996). No textbook glossary consulted.
This entry has not yet been through clinical review. Treat it as a draft.