Punishment, placebos, psychophysiology, and polemics in aversion therapy: A reply to danaher and lichtenstein

Danaher and Lichtenstein's (1973) comments on aversion therapy are briefly evaluated. It is suggested that they underestimate the importance of conditions of original training relative to the modification of smoking behavior using the “rapid smoking” method, confound the issues of endogenous cues and topographial similarity, blur important distinctions among various kinds of placebo control groups, incorrectly imply that attention to the qualitative aspects of aversive stimuli necessitates a psychophysiological methodology, and erroneously evaluate the clinical utility of parametric studies. It is emphasized that most of these issues can be empirically resolved if investigators utilize more precise experimental designs.