How can spontaneous recovery be overcome in order to extinguish a behavior?
a. One must use partial reinforcement in order to wean the subject away from the behavior gradually.
b. One must respond to an extinction burst with the reward in order to minimize frustration.
c. One must be persistent in not rewarding the behavior that is to be extinguished.
d. One must refrain from rewarding any behaviors during the extinction process.
Answer: c. One must be persistent in not rewarding the behavior that is to be extinguished.
Persistence is the key in overcoming spontaneous recovery and extinguishing a behavior. For example, if a child throws tantrums in the grocery store to get candy, the parent may have to endure several tantrums in the grocery store without providing the child with candy before the behavior is fully eliminated.
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