The Ethical Range of Extinction with Steve Ward

The presenter will provide a rich and deep description of the use of extinction as a component of behavioral interventions. Both proactive and reactive alternatives will be considered. Extinction is not “evil”, and can provide a powerful means both of decreasing problematic behaviors and of increasing appropriate behaviors. But extinction can produce negative side effects and is sometimes used without sufficient consideration of alternatives. Particular attention will be given to “wait outs”, one reactive alternative to traditional forms of escape extinction, as a way of understanding how degrees of intrusiveness distinguish one use of extinction from another.

Learning Objectives:

1. Attendees will be able to list at least 2 potential problems with the use of extinction.
2. Attendees will be able to list at least one appropriate use of extinction.
3. Attendees will be able to explain how and why “wait outs” can sometimes provide an effective alternative to traditional forms of escape extinction.
4. Attendees will be able to identify at least one resource to use to determine the range of extinction to apply in a given situation
5. Attendees will be able to identify at least one resource to use to determine interventions for escape maintained challenging behavior