title: Extinction in multiple contexts: Effects on the rate of extinction and the strength of response recovery.
abstract: In two human predictive-learning experiments, we investigated the effects of extinction in multiple contexts on the rate of extinction and the strength of response recovery. In each experiment, participants initially received acquisition training with a target cue in one context, followed by extinction either in a different context (extinction in a single context) or in three different contexts (extinction in multiple contexts). The results of both experiments showed that conducting extinction in multiple contexts led to higher levels of responding during extinction than did extinction in a single context. Additionally, Experiment 2 showed that extinction in multiple contexts prevented ABC renewal but had no detectable impact on ABA renewal. Our results are discussed within the framework of contemporary learning theories of contextual control and extinction.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Marburg, Germany. je.bustamante@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bustamante
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Marburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Metin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Uengoer
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Marburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Thorwart
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Marburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Harald
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lachnit
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005108:Extinction, Psychological; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning
keywords: Context; Extinction; Human learning; Renewal