Extinction Burst

What is an Extinction Burst?

An extinction burst is an initial increase in the frequency or intensity of a behavior after the reinforcement that maintained it stops. The behavior briefly increases instead of immediately fading.

An example of an extinction burst

Suppose a dog has received treats for sitting on cue. After the treats stop, it sits more often than before. That increase would be an extinction burst. Simply continuing at the old rate would not.

With continued absence of reinforcement, the response may become less frequent. That process is called extinction.

Does it always happen?

No. Lerman and Iwata (1995) found bursts in 24% of 113 applied data sets. That describes the cases they examined, not a universal probability for every person, animal or procedure.

Why it matters

Removing reinforcement does not always produce an immediate, smooth decline in behavior. The early pattern matters, but an increase should not be assumed in advance or read as evidence of what the person or animal intends.