Evaluating resurgence procedures in a human operant laboratory

Resurgence is defined as the recurrence of a previously reinforced and then extinguished target response when reducing or eliminating a more recently reinforced alternative response. In experiments with children and pigeons, we evaluated patterns of resurgence across and within sessions through decreases in reinforcer availability by challenging alternative responding with extinction and progressive‐ratio schedules. In Phase 1, we reinforced only target responding. In Phase 2, we extinguished target responding while reinforcing an alternative response. Finally, Phase 3 assessed resurgence by (a) extinguishing alternative responding versus (b) introducing a progressive‐ratio schedule of reinforcement for alternative responding. In both children and pigeons, resurgence of target responding occurred in both conditions but generally was greater when assessed during extinction than with progressive ratios. Importantly, within‐session patterns of resurgence did not differ between testing with progressive ratios and extinction. Resurgence with progressive ratios tended to be greater with longer durations between reinforcers but we observed similar findings with only simulated reinforcers during extinction testing. Therefore, the present investigation reveals that the events contributing to instances of resurgence remain to be understood, and presents an approach from which to examine variables influencing within‐session patterns of resurgence.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resurgence when challenging alternative behavior with progressive ratios in children and pigeons

Ho¹,

Bai

Keevy³

et al. 2018

“…Several design aspects of relapse studies can strengthen their conclusions, including establishing stable baseline rates of response, between‐ and within‐subjects replication, and adequate control conditions. For example, an inactive manipulandum that is never paired with reinforcement can serve as a useful within‐subjects control (e.g., Bolivar, Cox, Barlow, & Dallery, ; Craig & Shahan, ; Pelloux et al, ; Sweeney & Shahan, ). In general, relapse on the target response should exceed responding on an inactive control response, for which increases in responding could be explained by a generalized increase in response variability rather than prior history of reinforcement.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An alternative approach to relapse analysis: Using Monte Carlo methods and proportional rates of response

Friedel

Galizio

Berry

et al. 2018

Relapse is the recovery of a previously suppressed response. Animal models have been useful in examining the mechanisms underlying relapse (e.g., reinstatement, renewal, reacquisition, resurgence). However, there are several challenges to analyzing relapse data using traditional approaches. For example, null hypothesis significance testing is commonly used to determine whether relapse has occurred. However, this method requires several a priori assumptions about the data, as well as a large sample size for between‐subjects comparisons or repeated testing for within‐subjects comparisons. Monte Carlo methods may represent an improved analytic technique, because these methods require no prior assumptions, permit smaller sample sizes, and can be tailored to account for all of the data from an experiment instead of some limited set. In the present study, we conducted reanalyses of three studies of relapse (Berry, Sweeney, & Odum, ; Galizio et al., ; Odum & Shahan, ) using Monte Carlo techniques to determine if relapse occurred and if there were differences in rate of response based on relevant independent variables (such as group membership or schedule of reinforcement). These reanalyses supported the previous findings. Finally, we provide general recommendations for using Monte Carlo methods in studies of relapse.

“…If, however, the difference between target and control responding is small, or control responding exceeds target responding, then variables other than the prior reinforcement history are implicated in determining the latter. Indeed, the amount of human control responding during the resurgence test equaled or exceeded target responding in several of the experiments (e.g., Bolívar, Cox, Barlow, & Dallery, 2017;Bruzek, Thompson, & Peters, 2009;Cox, Bolívar, & Barlow, 2018;Sweeney & Shahan, 2016). Before considering the interpretation of the presence or absence of control responding, findings from experiments in which a control response was used should be considered to provide a concrete context for evaluating its use and interpretation.…”

Section: The Logic Of the Control Responsementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a three-phase resurgence experiment conducted by Bolívar et al (2017), human participants earned points on variable-interval schedules in the first two phases by clicking objects displayed on a computer screen. As in Sweeney and Shahan (2016), the frequency of control responding was similar to or exceeded the frequency of target responding during the resurgence test.…”

Section: Resurgence Experiments With Human Participantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The control response in assessing resurgence: Useful or compromised tool?

Lattal

Oliver

2019

Resurgence experiments sometimes include an operandum on which a history of reinforcement has not been experimentally established. The purpose of this control operandum is to rule out a generalized increase in responding when the alternative response is extinguished as being the cause of the resurgent target response. A review of the results of experiments conducted with both nonhumans and humans in which a control operandum was included shows that control-operandum responding is more common in the latter and almost nonexistent in the former. Both the presence and absence of responding on the control operandum, however, are subject to multiple interpretations thereby rendering it a compromised tool. Alternatives to using a control operandum to rule out extinction induction as the basis for resurgence include a preresurgence test control procedure and a differential resurgence procedure.