Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4454-1955

Semester

Spring

Date of Graduation

2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

PhD

College

Eberly College of Arts and Sciences

Department

Psychology

Committee Chair

Kathryn Kestner

Committee Member

Claire St. Peter

Committee Member

Kennon Lattal

Committee Member

Barry Edelstein

Committee Member

Kimberly Floyd

Abstract

Successful clinical behavior analytic treatment often results in decreases in challenging behavior and increases in appropriate behavior. These reductions in challenging behavior are often achieved by implementing differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA; Petscher et al., 2009). One variation of DRA to decrease challenging behavior is differential reinforcement with asymmetrical choices, which are two or more concurrently available response options associated with differential outcomes (Fisher & Mazur, 1997; Kestner et al., 2023). However, responding that was previously reduced sometimes reemerges. Specifically, renewal is the reemergence of a previously reduced response following a context change. The first two experiments evaluated renewal following differential reinforcement with asymmetrical choices with (Experiment 1) and without extinction (Experiment 2). Asymmetrical choices without extinction were arranged by reinforcing the target response with a lower magnitude of points relative to two concurrently available alternative responses. Renewal occurred for nine of 10 participants (90%) across Experiments 1 and 2. In addition to evaluating renewal, it is also critical to identify techniques for preventing renewal of undesirable behavior. Experiment 3 evaluated a context-fading procedure to mitigate ABA renewal during differential reinforcement with asymmetrical choices with extinction. Renewal occurred for nine of 18 participants (50.00%) in the Context Fading Group and 17 of 18 participants (94.44%) in the No-Fading Group. Context fading mitigated ABA renewal; however, increases in the target response occurred during context fading. All experiments were conducted in a human-operant arrangement to evaluate renewal in a highly controlled laboratory setting. Limitations, future directions, and clinical implications are discussed.

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