Abstract
Rats trained on a Sidman avoidance schedule subsequently received Pavlovian fear conditioning (CS+ paired with electric shock). When the CS+ was presented during performance on the avoidance schedule, response rate increased. However, by virtue of repeated extinction sessions, this CS+ gradually lost its excitatory function and indeed gradually came to reduce the rate of avoidance to a level below the baseline. This phenomenon was interpreted as evidence for Pavlovian extinctive inhibition, i.e., the extinguished CS+ functioned as an inhibitor with the capacity to suppress avoidance behavior.
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Kamano, D.K. Effects of an extinguished fear stimulus on avoidance behavior. Psychon Sci 13, 271–272 (1968). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03342519
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03342519