After a dog had been conditioned to salivate at the sight of meat powder, the meat powder was presented to the dog every three minutes and held just out of the dog's reach. Over the course of several trials, the amount of saliva the dog secretes decreases to zero, indicating that _____ had occurred.
A) negative reinforcement
B) biological preparedness
C) extinction
D) spontaneous recovery

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The decreasing amount of saliva indicated that the dog's previous conditioning had been extinguished. Extinction occurs when a conditioned response is weakened or eliminated when the conditioned stimulus (meat powder in this case) is no longer followed by the unconditioned stimulus (food).

After a Dog Had Been Conditioned to Salivate at the Sight