Final answer:
The gradual approach for extinguishing anxiety includes habituation, relaxation response, and operant conditioning techniques like shaping and extinction.
Step-by-step explanation:
The gradual approach for the extinction of anxiety responses to stimuli and the maladaptive behavior associated with that anxiety includes techniques such as habituation, where individuals learn to become accustomed to stimuli by being exposed to it repeatedly without harmful consequences, and the use of controlled exposure to reduce fear. The relaxation response approach is another method, where individuals engage in practices that decrease sympathetic arousal, used effectively to manage stress and physical conditions such as high blood pressure. Additionally, methods like shaping and extinction in operant conditioning play a role in gradually reducing anxiety responses where behaviors are rewarded progressively closer to the target behavior and diminished when a reinforcer is no longer present.