Gray (1982, cited in Pliszka, SR, Hatch, JP, Borchederding, SH and Rogeness, GA, 1993) proposed that human beings possess a system behavioral inhibition (BIS) whose function is to analyze new stimuli or process old stimuli associated with punishments in the past. According to Gray, BIS controls behavioral inhibition, which causes the body to avoid new stimuli or prevents it from engaging in behavior that caused past punishments. On the opposite end of the spectrum is the behavioral activation system (BAS), which processes reward-related stimuli. Quay (1988, cited in Pliszka et al., 1993) developed Gray's theory to develop his own theory of emotional and behavioral disorders in children. He argued that in some populations there might be differences between the BIS and the BAS, meaning that individuals with high levels of activity in the BIS would be more sensitive to punishment cues, while individuals with high levels of BAS activity would show less avoidance of punishment resulting in punishment. behaviors. Quay argued that children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) will exhibit reduced BIS activity, leading to a lack of behavioral inhibition. Pliszka et al. (1993) attempted to empirically test Quay's theory by investigating whether children with ADHD were less physiologically sensitive to punishment-related cues than normal children in a classical conditioning experiment. Based on Quay's theory, they hypothesized that children with ADHD would show fewer conditioned responses (change in heart rate and skin conductance) to a conditioned stimulus paired with an unconditioned aversive stimulus (noise white) than normal children. ... middle of article ...... in go/no-go tasks, people with ADHD are more impulsive than others and the study by Pliszka et al. shows a trend that suggests that children with ADHD show less conditioned response (change in heart rate and skin conductance) to a conditioned stimulus paired with an unconditioned aversive stimulus (white noise). Through repeated experiments including larger numbers of participants, it may be possible to find more support for Quay's theory. Works Cited Gomez, R. (2003). Processes underlying low response inhibition in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Journal of Attention Disorders, 6, 111 – 122. Pliszka, SR, Hatch, JP, Borchederding, SH and Rogeness, GA (1993). Classical conditioning in children with ADHD and anxiety disorders: A test of Quay's model. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 21, 411 – 423.