Figure 1.

Possible mechanisms by which a context might control a free operant response. A. Excitatory contextual control: An excitatory association between the context and reinforcing outcome (1), positive occasion setting by the context (2), and direct (habitual) evocation of the response by context (3). B. Inhibitory contextual control (as in an extinction context): An inhibitory association between the context and outcome (4), negative occasion setting by the context (5), and direct inhibition of the response by context (6).