An experimental study of covert extinction on smoking cessation

Twenty-one subjects participated on a volunteer nonpaid basis in a smoking cessation treatment experiment. The subjects were randomly assigned to three groups: one receiving training in covert extinction, one in relaxation, and a waiting list group serving as a control group. Behavioral (number of cigarettes smoked), physiological (pulse rate during treatment sessions) and cognitive (craving for cigarettes) assessments were made during and between sessions. Analysis of variance showed the time variable to be significant for number of cigarettes. Tukey's HSD tests showed a significant decrease in smoking after treatment for all three groups, and also for the two treatment groups until the follow-up occasion, although smoking had returned to a higher level (though not the initial one) after one month. There were also significant differences between the control group and both treatment groups with regards to pulse rate changes in treatment sessions. There was no significant change in craving, although a tendency pointed in the same direction for pulse rates. A tentative conclusion is that covert extinction is not a specific effective treatment method surpassing other nonspecific treatment procedures.