Basic and translational evaluation of renewal of operant responding

Abstract

Treatment relapse, defined as the reemergence of problem behavior after treatment, is a serious difficulty faced by clinicians. Failures of treatment integrity (i.e., failure to implement interventions as intended) are often invoked to explain the reemergence of problem behavior. Basic studies suggest that the prevailing stimulus context might also contribute. We conducted 2 experiments in which reinforcement for a target response was followed by 2 phases of extinction with different or identical stimulus contexts relative to baseline (ABA renewal). In Experiment 1, pigeons served as subjects using procedures typical of those used in basic behavioral research. Experiment 2 was designed as a translational replication of Experiment 1, and children who had been diagnosed with autism served as participants. Returning to the previously reinforced stimulus context in both species produced a clear and immediate increase of extinguished responding. These findings are consistent with previous studies that have suggested that both reinforcement contingencies and stimulus context influence the reemergence of extinguished behavior.

Operant renewal of desirable behavior in a simulated workplace: A translational model

“…These results replicate previous findings of renewal with human and nonhuman subjects (e.g., Kelley et al, 2015) and add to the limited literature of renewal with neurotypical adults (e.g., Alessandri et al, 2015;. These results replicate previous findings of renewal with human and nonhuman subjects (e.g., Kelley et al, 2015) and add to the limited literature of renewal with neurotypical adults (e.g., Alessandri et al, 2015;.…”

“…To develop a laboratory model of renewal in OBM, we conducted a systematic replication, blending the methodology used for operant renewal research with humans (e.g., Alessandri, Lattal, & Cançado, 2015;Kelley, Liddon, Ribeiro, Greif, & Podlesnik, 2015) into an OBM framework, using an experimental task commonly employed in OBM research (e.g., Palmer, Johnson, & Johnson, 2015;Wine & Wilder, 2009). …”

Extinction of instrumental (operant) learning: interference, varieties of context, and mechanisms of contextual control

“…Nakajima (2014) has also reported all three forms in an active shuttle-avoidance paradigm. And ABA, ABC, and AAB renewal have also been shown in studies with children diagnosed with with autism spectrum disorder (Cohenour, Volkert, & Allen, 2018; Kelley, Jimenez-Gomez, Podlesnik, & Morgan, 2018; Kelley, Liddon, Ribeiro, Grief, & Podlesnik, 2015; Liddon, Kelley, Rey, Liggett, & Ribeiro, 2018). Although AAB and ABC renewal effects are often weaker than ABA (e.g., Bouton et al, 2011; but see Todd, 2013; Todd et al, 2012), the overall picture suggests that the different forms of renewal do occur in several operant conditioning methods.…”

Renewal of fear and avoidance in humans to escalating threat: Implications for translational research on anxiety disorders

“…In applied settings where behavior analysts often treat escape/ avoidance-maintained problem behaviors, such as aggression, relapse is not uncommon and is often thought to result from poor treatment integrity by parents, guardians, and other caregivers (Kelley, Liddon, Ribeiro, Greif, & Podlesnik, 2015). In applied settings where behavior analysts often treat escape/ avoidance-maintained problem behaviors, such as aggression, relapse is not uncommon and is often thought to result from poor treatment integrity by parents, guardians, and other caregivers (Kelley, Liddon, Ribeiro, Greif, & Podlesnik, 2015).…”

“…In applied settings where behavior analysts often treat escape/ avoidance-maintained problem behaviors, such as aggression, relapse is not uncommon and is often thought to result from poor treatment integrity by parents, guardians, and other caregivers (Kelley, Liddon, Ribeiro, Greif, & Podlesnik, 2015). Therefore, the present findings suggest practitioners should plan and prepare caregivers for possible renewal of negatively reinforced problem behavior in treatment and nontreatment contexts even when the treatment is implemented with high levels of procedural integrity (Kelley et al, 2015). Conditions supporting renewal may originate with difficulties centered on stimulus control via specific stimuli within different environmental contexts where the treatment is and is not implemented.…”