What describes spontaneous recovery in the context of behavior?

Spontaneous recovery refers to the phenomenon where a previously extinguished behavior reemerges after a period of rest or inactivity. In the context of behavior, this means that even after a behavior has been eliminated through extinction, it can suddenly return when a subject is later presented with the same conditions that initially elicited that behavior. This underscores the idea that extinction does not erase the learning that has occurred; instead, it might temporarily suppress the behavior.

In practical terms, if a dog has been trained to sit on command and then stops sitting after the behavior has been extinguished (due to lack of reinforcement), after a break, the dog might spontaneously sit again upon hearing the command. This illustrates that the behavior was not completely forgotten but can resurface after a rest period. Thus, the understanding of spontaneous recovery is crucial in fields such as psychology and behavior modification, as it reflects the resilience of learned behaviors.