Mowrer’s Two-Factor Theory Mowrer’s (1939) two-factor theory was among early theoretical conceptual- izations that attempted to bring meaning and understanding to fear and avoidance behavior. Indeed, it is a theory that makes up part of Davey’s model as well as the fear-avoidance model. Using, a classical conditioning, framework, Mowrer postulated that a neutral stimulus acquired aversive properties in the presence, and temporal contiguity of, a fear-evoking event. It is the reduction in fear that consequences avoidance of the aversive stim. uli that maintains such behavior. When aversive stimuli are avoided, fear is reduced and avoidance behavior is maintained (i.e., negative reinforcement), The process begins with arbitrary stimuli, such as the sights, sounds, and odors of a dental operatory, such as the dental chair, drilling sounds, and characteristic smells of a dental office (conditioned stimuli—CS), which are present in the patient's environment just prior to a pain stimulus in the pa- tient’s mouth, such as an upper palate injection (unconditioned stimulus— UCS). The patient then responds with fear (unconditioned response UCR). In the future when dental operatory stimuli (e.g., chair, drilling, and/or smell) elicit a fear response, they have become conditioned stimuli, and fear in their presence is a conditioned response (conditioned response—CR). When the patient who has developed the conditioned response to dental stimuli then avoids the dental office by canceling or not showing for an ap- pointment, the associated reduction of fear is a relief and continues the vi cious cycle of avoidance behavior (ie., no visits to the dental office). Although this model was accepted for many years as critical in understand. ing behavior, newer models of fear and avoicance were developed to ac- count for shortcomings in two-factor theory (e.g,, the role of cognitive factors in fear learning) (see Craske, 1999, for a review). Among the revised condi- Honing conceptualizations was Davey’s model of the conditioning process.