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The persistence of operant behavior when disrupted tends to be positively related to how often reinforcers were delivered in the past. Behavioral momentum theory describes this finding as the outcome of Pavlovian processes. That is, the relation between discriminative stimuli and reinforcers that were delivered in their presence strengthens behavior, thereby making it more likely to persist. If only the story were that simple. A growing number of findings challenge the basic tenets of behavioral momentum theory. Some even call into question whether Pavlovian relations contribute to persistence in the first place. In this paper, I will review behavioral momentum theory and some of the data that have been problematic for the theory. I will argue that despite these very real challenges, the theory provides important utility not only to basic analyses of response persistence but also to clinical interventions directed at long-term reductions in problem behavior. It, for example, has set the stage for the development of alternative conceptual analyses of resistance to change, two of which will be highlighted for readers. Moreover, behavioral momentum theory may tell us something important about the reasons it continues to have an influence on the field, despite the challenging data that deter it.

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Behavioral momentum theory (BMT) suggests that resurgence of destructive behavior may be at least partly determined by the rate of alternative reinforcement, with lean schedules of reinforcement producing less resurgence than dense schedules. Findings from basic and translational studies have been mixed, and the effects of alternative reinforcement rate on resurgence remain unclear. In the current study, we conducted a within-subject evaluation of resurgence during extinction with four children following functional communication training using dense and lean (BMT-informed) schedules of alternative reinforcement. We observed no reliable differences in resurgence across the dense and lean conditions. We discuss implications of these findings in relation to future research using quantitative analyses to evaluate the relative effects of alternative reinforcement rate and other BMT-based strategies for mitigating resurgence in applied settings.

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The most important advancement in the treatment of destructive behavior has been the development of the functional analysis, which is used to prescribe effective treatments like functional communication training. Although this approach can be highly effective, extinction bursts and forms of treatment relapse commonly occur when function-based treatments are implemented by caregivers in natural community settings. In recent years, researchers have increasingly applied quantitative theories of behavior like behavioral momentum theory (BMT) and the temporally weighted matching law (TWML) to understand, prevent, or mitigate extinction bursts and treatment relapse. In this paper, we describe BMT and TWML and selectively review the basic, translational, and applied research supporting and opposing each theory. Then, we describe how function-based treatments may be refined based on these theories to improve the effectiveness, generality, and durability of function-based treatments for individuals with autism spectrum and related disorders who display problem behavior.

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The hypothesis that response strength might be measured by persistence of responding in the face of extinction was discredited in the 1960s because experiments showed that responding persists longer following intermittent reinforcers than following continuous reinforcers. Instead, researchers proposed that the longer persistence following intermittent reinforcers arises because intermittent reinforcement more closely resembles extinction-a discrimination theory. Attention to resistance to extinction revived because one observation seemed to support the persistence hypothesis: Following training on a multiple schedule with unequal components, responding usually persisted longer in the formerly richer component than in the formerly lean component. This observation represents an anomaly, however, because results with single schedules and concurrent schedules contradict it. We suggest that the difference in results arises because the multiple-schedule procedure, while including extensive training on stimulus discrimination, includes no training on discrimination between food available and food unavailable, whereas comparable single- and concurrent-schedule procedures include such training with repeated extinction. In Experiment 1, we replicated the original result, and in Experiment 2 showed that when the multiple-schedule procedure includes training on food/no-food discrimination, extinction following multiple schedules contradicts behavioral momentum theory and agrees with the discrimination theory and research with single and concurrent schedules.

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Behavioral Momentum Theory (BMT) is often described as analogous to Newton's (1687) laws of motion. That is to say, similar to an object in motion continuing in motion unless acted upon by a force, responses occurring in a static environment will continue to occur at the same rate, unless presented with a disruptor (Nevin, Tota, Torquato, & Shull, Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 53, 359-379, 1990). When evaluating response rates through a behavioral momentum framework, responding continuing after a change in reinforcer conditions is said to persist. Previous research conducted with nonhuman animals indicates greater response persistence following conditions with either higher reinforcer rates or higher reinforcer magnitudes (Nevin, Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 21(3), 389-408, 1974; Nevin et al., Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 53, 359-379, 1990). Although BMT's implications extend across human and nonhuman species, this literature review attempts to provide practitioners and researchers information regarding response persistence across various conditions with human participants.

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In the clinic, differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) often involves programming extinction for destructive behavior while reinforcing an alternative form of communication (e.g., a functional communication response); however, implementing extinction can be unsafe or impractical under some circumstances. Quantitative theories of resurgence (i.e., Behavioral Momentum Theory and Resurgence as Choice) predict differences in the efficacy of treatments that do and do not involve extinction of target responding when reinforcement conditions maintaining alternative responding worsen. We tested these predictions by examining resurgence following two DRA conditions in which we equated rates of reinforcement. In DRA without extinction, target and alternative behavior produced reinforcement. In DRA with extinction plus noncontingent reinforcement, only alternative behavior produced reinforcement. We conducted this study in a reverse-translation sequence, first with participants who engaged in destructive behavior (Experiment 1) and then in a laboratory setting with rats (Experiment 2). Across both experiments, we observed proportionally lower levels of target responding during and following the DRA condition that arranged extinction for the target response. However, levels of resurgence were similar following both arrangements.

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Treatments based on differential reinforcement may inadvertently increase the recurrence of problem behavior in the face of challenges because reinforcers for appropriate behavior occur in the same context as problem behavior. The current study evaluated one potential approach to mitigating these problems with differential reinforcement treatments based on behavioral momentum theory. Specifically, appropriate behavior was trained in contexts without a history of reinforcement prior to intervening with problem behavior. Participants were 4 children with autism spectrum disorder. Treatment used telehealth to implement functional communication training (FCT) in three alternative contexts with minimal or no history of reinforcement for problem behavior before initiating FCT in the treatment context. Evaluations of the effects of treatment and tests of resurgence were conducted intermittently during treatment to evaluate maintenance. When FCT treatment was initiated in alternative contexts, initial results were comparable to more typical implementations of FCT. Resurgence was reduced to similar levels during tests of resurgence for all participants when compared to more typical previously published implementations of FCT, but clinically significant reductions in resurgence occurred more quickly in the present study. These findings support training appropriate behavior in an alternative context to mitigate the resurgence of problem behavior during differential reinforcement treatments.

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Results of several recent translational studies have suggested that correlating contextual or discriminative stimuli with the delivery and withholding of reinforcement for the functional communication response (FCR) may mitigate resurgence of destructive behavior, but few, if any, have isolated the effects of those stimuli. In the present study, we first trained the FCR, brought it under stimulus control of a multiple schedule, and thinned its reinforcement schedule in one stimulus context. Next, we conducted resurgence evaluations (i.e., baseline, functional communication training [FCT], extinction challenge) in two novel contexts to test the effects of the discriminative stimuli on resurgence. We programmed one context to include the (a) SD during the FCT phase to signal the availability of reinforcement for the FCR and (b) SΔ during a subsequent extinction challenge to signal the unavailability of reinforcement for the FCR. The other context did not include the SD during the FCT phase, nor the SΔ during the extinction challenge. We expected to see greater persistence of the FCR in the context that included the SD during FCT and less persistence of the FCR and less resurgence of destructive behavior in the context that included the SΔ during the extinction challenge. Obtained results confirmed this latter prediction, but we observed no reliable difference when the SD was present or absent during the FCT phase. Our results have relevance for practitioners in that they provide further empirical support for the use of discriminative stimuli when treating destructive behavior.

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Concepts from behavioral momentum theory, along with some empirical findings, suggest that the rate of baseline reinforcement may contribute to the relapse of severe destructive behavior. With seven children who engaged in destructive behavior, we tested this hypothesis in the context of functional communication training by comparing the effects of different baseline reinforcement rates on resurgence during a treatment challenge (i.e., extinction). We observed convincing resurgence of destructive behavior in four of seven participants, and we observed more resurgence in the condition associated with high-rate baseline reinforcement (i.e., variable-interval 2 s in Experiment 1 or fixed-ratio 1 in Experiment 2) compared to a low-rate baseline reinforcement condition. We discuss the implications of these results relative to schedules of reinforcement in the treatment of destructive behavior and strategies to mitigate resurgence in clinical settings.

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The resurgence of destructive behavior can occur during functional communication training (FCT) if the alternative response contacts a challenge (e.g., extinction). Behavioral momentum theory (BMT) suggests that refinements to FCT could mitigate resurgence of destructive behavior during periods of extinction. Following a functional analysis and treatment with FCT, we combined three refinements to FCT (i.e., the use of a lean schedule of reinforcement for destructive behavior during baseline, a lean schedule for the alternative response during FCT, and an increase in the duration of treatment) and compared the magnitude of resurgence relative to a condition in which FCT was implemented in a traditional manner. Results suggested that the combination of these three refinements to FCT was successful in decreasing the resurgence of destructive behavior during an extinction challenge. We discuss the implications of these findings, as well as areas for future research.

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We summarize the results of four recent translational studies from our lab that used the predictions of behavioral momentum theory to inform the development of more durable treatments for destructive behavior. Treatments informed by behavioral momentum theory generally showed better suppression of target responding during an extinction challenge than did a comparison treatment. We reanalyze data from each of the four studies to show that this general finding is apparent both at the aggregate (i.e., proportion of baseline response rates averaged across participants) and within participant (i.e., percentage reduction in proportion of baseline response rates, difference in raw response rates during the extinction challenge). Interestingly, participants who experienced multiple cycles of the extinction challenge generally showed less differentiation in target responding between the treatment informed by behavioral momentum theory and the comparison treatment. Overall results suggest that applications of behavioral momentum theory can substantially improve the durability of common treatments for destructive behavior.

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Spontaneous recovery occurs when a previously reinforced and recently extinguished response reemerges over the course of time, often at the beginning of a new session of extinction. Spontaneous recovery could underlie instances of treatment relapse that threaten otherwise effective behavioral interventions for problem behavior. In two experiments, we arranged multiple schedules with pigeons and a human child to assess the effects of different training reinforcer rates on spontaneous recovery. In both experiments, responding was both more resistant to extinction and more likely to relapse following training with greater reinforcement rates upon returning to extinction after time off from extinction testing. A quantitative model based on behavioral momentum theory accounted well for the data, which suggests reexposure to the extinction context following time off during extinction resulted in (1) the failure of extinction learning to generalize, and (2) greater generalization of original learning during training. The present model attempts to quantify theories attributing spontaneous recovery to changes in temporal context.

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Resistance to extinction in a target multiple-schedule component varies inversely with the rate of reinforcement arranged in an alternative component during baseline. The present experiment asked whether changing the reinforcer rate in an alternative component would impact extinction of target component responding if those changes occurred in an off-baseline phase during which the target component was never experienced. Pigeons' key pecking was studied in three types of conditions, and each condition consisted of three phases. In Phase 1, pecking produced food in the target and alternative components of a multiple schedule according to variable-interval 60-s schedules. In Phase 2, the alternative-component stimulus was presented alone in a single schedule. Pecking during this phase produced the same reinforcer rate as in baseline in the Control condition, a higher rate of food (variable-interval 15 s) in the High-Rate condition, or was extinguished in the Extinction condition. Extinction of target- and alternative-component key pecking then was assessed in a multiple schedule during the final phase of each condition. Resistance to extinction of target-component key pecking was the same between the Control and High-Rate conditions but lower in the Extinction condition. These findings are discussed in terms of discrimination and generalization processes.

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Differential-reinforcement treatments reduce target problem behavior in the short term but at the expense of making it more persistent long term. Basic and translational research based on behavioral momentum theory suggests that combining features of stimuli governing an alternative response with the stimuli governing target responding could make target responding less persistent. However, changes to the alternative stimulus context when combining alternative and target stimuli could diminish the effectiveness of the alternative stimulus in reducing target responding. In an animal model with pigeons, the present study reinforced responding in the presence of target and alternative stimuli. When combining the alternative and target stimuli during extinction, we altered the alternative stimulus through changes in line orientation. We found that (1) combining alternative and target stimuli in extinction more effectively decreased target responding than presenting the target stimulus on its own; (2) combining these stimuli was more effective in decreasing target responding trained with lower reinforcement rates; and (3) changing the alternative stimulus reduced its effectiveness when it was combined with the target stimulus. Therefore, changing alternative stimuli (e.g., therapist, clinical setting) during behavioral treatments that combine alternative and target stimuli could reduce the effectiveness of those treatments in disrupting problem behavior.

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We review quantitative accounts of behavioral momentum theory (BMT), its application to clinical treatment, and its extension to post-intervention relapse of target behavior. We suggest that its extension can account for relapse using reinstatement and renewal models, but that its application to resurgence is flawed both conceptually and in its failure to account for recent data. We propose that the enhanced persistence of target behavior engendered by alternative reinforcers is limited to their concurrent availability within a distinctive stimulus context. However, a failure to find effects of stimulus-correlated reinforcer rates in a Pavlovian-to-Instrumental Transfer (PIT) paradigm challenges even a straightforward Pavlovian account of alternative reinforcer effects. BMT has been valuable in understanding basic research findings and in guiding clinical applications and accounting for their data, but alternatives are needed that can account more effectively for resurgence while encompassing basic data on resistance to change as well as other forms of relapse.

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Noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) is typically implemented with extinction (EXT) for destructive behavior reinforced by social consequences and without EXT for destructive behavior reinforced by sensory consequences. Behavioral momentum theory (BMT) predicts that responding will be more persistent, and treatment relapse in the form of response resurgence more likely, when NCR is implemented without EXT due to the greater overall rate of reinforcement associated with this intervention. We used an analogue arrangement to test these predictions of BMT by comparing NCR implemented with and without EXT. For two of three participants, we observed more immediate reductions in responding during NCR without EXT. However, for all participants, NCR without EXT produced greater resurgence than NCR with EXT when we discontinued all reinforcers during an EXT Only phase, although there was variability in response patterns across and within participants. Implications for treatment of destructive behavior using NCR are discussed.

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The connection, or bridge, between applied and basic behavior analysis has been long-established (Hake, 1982; Mace & Critchfield, 2010). In this article, we describe how clinical decisions can be based more directly on behavioral processes and how basing clinical procedures on behavioral processes can lead to improved clinical outcomes. As a case in point, we describe how applied behavior analyses of maintenance, and specifically the long-term maintenance of treatment effects related to problem behavior, can be adjusted and potentially enhanced by basing treatment on Behavioral Momentum Theory. We provide a brief review of the literature including descriptions of two translational studies that proposed changes in how differential reinforcement of alternative behavior treatments are conducted based on Behavioral Momentum Theory. We then describe current clinical examples of how these translations are continuing to impact the definitions, designs, analyses, and treatment procedures used in our clinical practice.

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With four children with autism we evaluated a refinement to time-based reinforcement designed to reduce response persistence when we simultaneously introduced time-based reinforcement and extinction. We further evaluated whether this refinement mitigated response recurrence when all reinforcer deliveries ceased during an extinction-only disruptor phase. The refinement involved increasing the saliency of the contingency change from contingent reinforcement (during baseline) to time-based reinforcement by delivering different colored reinforcers during time-based reinforcement. Behavioral momentum theory predicts that increasing the discriminability of the change from variable-interval to variable-time reinforcement should lead to faster reductions in responding. We present data on four participants, three of whom displayed response patterns consistent with the predictions of behavioral momentum theory during time-based reinforcement. However, the participants showed more varied patterns of recurrent behavior during extinction. We discuss these results within a translational research framework focusing on strategies used to mitigate treatment relapse for severe destructive behavior, as time-based reinforcement is one of the most commonly prescribed interventions for destructive behavior displayed by individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

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The baseline rate of a reinforced target response decreases with the availability of response-independent sources of alternative reinforcement; however, resistance to disruption and relapse increases. Because many behavioral treatments for problem behavior include response-dependent reinforcement of alternative behavior, the present study assessed whether response-dependent alternative reinforcement also decreases baseline response rates but increases resistance to extinction and relapse. We reinforced target responding at equal rates across two components of a multiple schedule with pigeons. We compared resistance to extinction and relapse via reinstatement of (1) a target response trained concurrently with a reinforced alternative response in one component with (2) a target response trained either concurrently or in separate components from the alternative response across conditions. Target response rates trained alone in baseline were higher but resistance to extinction and relapse via reinstatement tests were greater after training concurrently with the alternative response. In another assessment, training target and alternative responding together, but separating them during extinction and reinstatement tests, produced equal resistance to extinction and relapse. Together, these findings are consistent with behavioral momentum theory-operant response-reinforcer relations determined baseline response rates but Pavlovian stimulus-reinforcer relations established during training determined resistance to extinction and relapse. These findings imply that reinforcing alternative behavior to treat problem behavior could initially reduce rates but increase persistence.

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Despite the effectiveness and widespread use of functional communication training (FCT), resurgence of destructive behavior can occur if the functional communication response (FCR) contacts a challenge, such as lapses in treatment integrity. We evaluated a method to mitigate resurgence by conducting FCT using a multiple schedule of reinforcement prior to extinction. After functional analyses of 2 boys' destructive behavior and treatment with FCT (Study 1), we compared levels of resurgence during an extinction challenge either after a typical FCT sequence or after exposure to schedule thinning in the context of a multiple-schedule arrangement (Study 2). Results for both participants suggested that schedule thinning using discriminative stimuli in a multiple schedule mitigated the resurgence of destructive behavior.

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