What happens when a conditioned response is extinguished?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

When a conditioned response is extinguished, the conditioned stimulus no longer signals that the unconditioned stimulus will follow. In other words, the association between the conditioned stimulus and the unconditioned stimulus is weakened or no longer exists. The organism learns that the conditioned stimulus is no longer a reliable predictor of the unconditioned stimulus, and so the conditioned response diminishes or disappears. Choices A and C are incorrect, as they do not accurately describe what happens during extinction. While an inhibitory association may form in some cases, it is not a direct result of the extinction process. Likewise, the association between the unconditioned stimulus and the unconditioned response is not relevant to extinction, as extinction only pertains to conditioning and the formation and breakdown of associations between stimuli and responses.

What Happens When a Conditioned Response Is Extinguished