Browning Kaitlyn O, Sutton Gabrielle M, Nist Anthony N, Shahan Timothy A
Utah State University, USA.
Utah State University, USA.
Behav Processes. 2022 Feb;195:104586. doi: 10.1016/j.beproc.2022.104586. Epub 2022 Jan 19.
Resurgence refers to an increase of a previously reinforced target behavior following the worsening of conditions for a more recently reinforced alternative behavior. There is evidence to suggest that alternative reinforcers of greater magnitude are more effective at reducing target responding but may also result in more resurgence when removed. Similar effects have been observed with high rates of alternative reinforcement. However, in clinical settings, reinforcement rate thinning is used to reduce the likelihood of resurgence associated with higher rates of alternative reinforcement. Given the clinical importance of alternative reinforcer magnitude, it is necessary to evaluate how reinforcer magnitude thinning may impact resurgence as well. Following Phase 1 in which target responding was reinforced, rats earned either large (six pellets), small (one pellet), or thinned (reduced from six pellets to one across sessions) magnitude reinforcement for alternative responding during target-response extinction in Phase 2. Then, alternative responding was placed on extinction for all groups in Phase 3. Target responding was comparably elevated at the end of Phase 2 for groups Small and Thin compared to group Large. In Phase 3, resurgence was evident only in group Large but target responding remained relatively elevated in groups Small and Thin. These results provide additional evidence of the important interplay between conditions of alternative reinforcement and the persistence and resurgence of target responding.
恢复指的是在最近强化的替代行为的条件恶化之后，先前得到强化的目标行为出现增加。有证据表明，强度更大的替代强化物在减少目标反应方面更有效，但在移除时也可能导致更多的恢复。在替代强化率较高时也观察到了类似的效果。然而，在临床环境中，强化率递减被用于降低与较高替代强化率相关的恢复可能性。鉴于替代强化物强度在临床上的重要性，有必要评估强化物强度递减会如何影响恢复。在第1阶段对目标反应进行强化之后，在第2阶段目标反应消退期间，大鼠在替代反应时获得大强度（六颗食丸）、小强度（一颗食丸）或强度递减（在各实验环节中从六颗食丸减至一颗）的强化。然后，在第3阶段对所有组的替代反应进行消退。与大强度组相比，小强度组和强度递减组在第2阶段结束时目标反应同等程度地升高。在第3阶段，恢复仅在大强度组中明显，但小强度组和强度递减组中的目标反应仍相对较高。这些结果为替代强化条件与目标反应的持续性和恢复之间重要的相互作用提供了更多证据。
