Multiple-context training mitigates renewal during differential reinforcement

Renewal occurs when a behavior is reduced in one context but reemerges when transitioning to a different context, which poses challenges for behavioral interventions. This preclinical research evaluated whether multiple-context training could mitigate renewal of operant behavior eliminated with extinction and differential reinforcement of an alternative behavior (DRA + EXT) in humans recruited through crowdsourcing. In each of two experiments, three groups received conditioning, with point deliveries as reinforcers for a target-button press within Context A. During DRA + EXT, multiple-context training arranged nine alternations among three contexts (BCD) for one group, while the other two groups experienced equal DRA + EXT exposure but within a single context (B). During testing, the control group remained in Context B while multiple- and single-context groups transitioned to either the original Context A (Experiment 1) or a novel Context E (Experiment 2). Both experiments provided the first evidence suggesting multiple-context training can mitigate renewal with DRA + EXT contingencies. However, the present findings joined others showing multiple-context training slowed reductions in target responding during DRA + EXT compared with single-context training, suggesting trade-offs in the use of this mitigation strategy.