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CHAPTER 2 32 ABSTRACT Empirical evidence for the detrimental effect of safety behaviors on fear extinction is inconsistent. This fear conditioning study investigated whether the negative effects of safety behavior on extinction learning depend on whether safety behavior precludes the occurrence of threat. In two experiments, participants first underwent fear acquisition. During a subsequent extinction procedure, participants used safety behavior that precluded the occurrence of threat, safety behavior that minimized threat severity, or no safety behavior. Safety behavior that precluded the occurrence of threat prevented extinction learning in the first and second experiment. Additionally, in the second experiment, safety behavior that minimized threat severity did not prevent extinction for several participants. For other participants, however, this safety behavior prevented extinction. The current findings suggest that the negative effects of safety behavior on extinction learning do not only depend on whether safety behavior precludes the occurrence of threat.