D.4 · Behavior Reduction

Extinction procedures

Review examples of extinction in which a response stops producing the reinforcement that maintained it. RBT implementation requires an approved, function-specific plan, training and authorization, with communication, care and safety provisions preserved.

Task D.4: Apply extinction procedures

Useful foundations: C.1: Positive and negative reinforcement · D.1: Functions of behavior

The rule

Extinction discontinues the reinforcement that previously maintained a response. Continue the plan’s attention, support, communication and safety provisions.

Identify the assessed maintaining consequence and the documented plan. RBTs implement only procedures they are trained and authorized to use, alongside the plan’s alternative responses and safety provisions.

Key terms

Extinction: Discontinuing the reinforcement that previously maintained a response.

What to look for

Distinction	Look for	How to decide
Maintaining consequence	The response no longer produces its established reinforcer	Match extinction to the assessed function.
Preserved supports	Alternative reinforcement and ordinary care continue	Change the specified maintaining contingency while preserving support and safety care.
Plan boundary	Written procedure, competence and escalation	Use extinction according to the assessed function, approved plan and your training.

Worked examples

Specific contingency

A game button stops earning points

In a teaching simulation, pressing a green button previously added a point. The programmed change stops points following green-button presses, while a blue-button response still earns points. Green presses decline over repeated trials.

Relevant facts

Green presses formerly produced points.
That response–point relation is discontinued.

This illustrates extinction of the previously reinforced green-button response.

Green press → points before; green press → no points now

The green-button response has stopped producing its maintaining consequence. The separate response can continue to earn its programmed reinforcement.

Clinical boundary

Track the maintaining consequence

A supervisor’s assessment identifies task removal as maintaining a learner’s target behavior. A coworker says, “I used extinction: I stopped talking, then put the work away.”

Relevant facts

Task removal is the identified maintaining consequence.
The coworker still removes the task.

The task-removal consequence still occurs, so the identified reinforcement continues.

Target response → task removed remains intact

Report what occurred and seek supervisor guidance. Implement the function-specific plan within your training and preserve its safety and communication provisions.

What changes the answer?

Return to the game simulation and keep the green-button press.

Points previously maintained green-button pressing.

Pressing no longer produces points.

The maintaining reinforcement is discontinued.

This is the extinction arrangement.

The screen changes color. Pressing continues to produce points.

The reinforcement relation remains.

The point consequence remains available, so the maintaining contingency continues.

Track what happens to the consequence that maintained the response.

Remember

Extinction is specific to a maintaining relation.
Safety, care and approved alternative communication remain essential.

Sources for this topic

Reviewed 2026-09-30 · D.4 version 3.