In the extinction process, what must happen to previously reinforced behavior?

In the extinction process, previously reinforced behavior must no longer receive reinforcement. This means that the behavior is effectively "extinguished" because the reinforcement that previously maintained it is no longer available. By withholding reinforcement, the goal is to reduce the occurrence of that behavior over time.

When a behavior is no longer reinforced, it may initially increase in frequency or intensity due to frustration or the individual’s efforts to regain reinforcement, a phenomenon known as an extinction burst. However, with consistent application of extinction, the behavior will eventually weaken and diminish as the individual learns that their efforts to engage in that behavior will not result in the expected reinforcement.

In contrast, ignoring the behavior completely may not definitively lead to extinction since the absence of reinforcement does not explicitly indicate to the individual why the behavior is no longer effective. Continuing to reinforce the behavior contradicts the principles of extinction, as it maintains the behavior instead of diminishing it. Lastly, rewarding the behavior instead of allowing it to go unreinforced would actively promote the behavior rather than reduce it, counteracting the purpose of extinction.