Extinction is an effectiveEffective refers to one of the seven dimensions of ... technique used to reduce unwanted behaviors by removing the reinforcementReinforcement is a fundamental concept in Applied Behavior A... that maintains them. Though the behaviorBehavior refers to any activity or action that living o... may temporarily increase during the process (extinction burstAn Extinction Burst refers to a temporary inc...), consistent application of the extinction procedure typically leads to a decline in the behavior over time.
Example
A young boy named James constantly interrupts his parents during conversations by shouting, “Look at me!” In the past, his parents would stop what they were doing to acknowledge him, reinforcing the interrupting behavior. To implement extinction, his parents decide to withhold attention whenever James interrupts by no longer responding to his shouting. Instead, they only acknowledge him when he waits quietly for his turn to speak. Initially, James may shout even more loudly (extinction burst), but as his interruptions no longer receive attention, the shouting gradually decreases, and he learns to wait his turn to speak.
Attention ExtinctionAttention Extinction, also known as planned ignoring, is a s..., Escape ExtinctionEscape extinction is a behavioral strategy used in Applied B...