Time-out Procedure Research Articles

REDUCING DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIORS OF ELEMENTARY PHYSICAL EDUCATION STUDENTS WITH SIT AND WATCH

This study reduced the disruptive behaviors of students in two elementary physical education classes: a regular fourth-grade class comprised of 30 students and an alternative education class containing 14 fourth- and fifth-grade boys with severe behavior problems. Using a multiple baseline design, we introduced a modified time-out procedure called "Sit and Watch." The procedure reduced the frequency of disruptive behaviors by 95%. Sit and Watch proved to be socially acceptable to parents, school personnel, and the physical education teacher.

Acceptability of time-out: The influence of problem behavior severity, interventionist, and reported effectiveness

Teachers' ratings of the acceptability of a classroom time-out procedure were assessed as a function of problem severity (mild vs. severe), different interventionists (teacher vs. school psychologist), and reported effectiveness (effective vs. no information). Written scenarios were completed by 103 teachers. The results indicated that acceptability ratings were higher when the described time-out procedure was implemented for severe problems and when information was provided that suggested that the intervention was effective. Higher ratings when the procedure was applied to a severe problem support previous research, and results dealing with effectiveness add to the literature concerning this variable. No differences were found for teachers' versus school psychologists' implementation of time-out, a finding that conflicts with the results of several studies that have suggested that teachers prefer direct involvement in interventions. Conflicting findings regarding the interventionist variable are discussed with respect to the time-consuming nature of the time-out procedure in the present investigation and the available alternative interventionist.

CONTEXTUAL CONTROL OF PROBLEM BEHAVIOR IN STUDENTS WITH SEVERE DISABILITIES

We investigated the impact of contextual variation on the effectiveness of two interventions. The problem behavior of 2 students with severe disabilities was analyzed across two contexts (task and leisure). Effects of differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) and time-out procedures were examined in the two contexts. Results indicated that in the task context the DRO procedure effectively reduced the problem behavior and increased task performance, whereas the time-out procedure was ineffective. In addition, rate of correct task performance increased during DRO relative to baseline and time-out. In contrast, in the leisure context, the time-out procedure effectively reduced the same problem behavior and the DRO procedure was ineffective. The results are discussed in terms of contextual control of problem behavior and alternative strategies for the design of DRO procedures.

A Comparison of Exclusion Time-Out and Contingent Observation for Reducing Severe Disruptive Behavior in a 7-Year-Old Boy

This study compared the effectiveness of exclusion time-out and contingent observation for reducing the severe disruptive behavior of a child with developmental disabilities. Interventions were employed in a classroom by a special education teacher and a teacher's aide. Procedural and functional integrity measures for the two interventions indicated that the treatments were implemented in an optimal manner. The results showed that both time-out procedures reduced disruption to very low levels and were not found to be differentially effective. The theoretical and practical significance of this finding are discussed.

The Teacher's Role in the Application of an Assertive Discipline Program for Students in a Venezuelan Primary School

This paper describes the application of an Assertive Discipline Program in a primary school of 567 students, ranging from first to sixth grade, ages 5 to 11 years. A series of intensive workshops and lectures on the theory and practice of assertive training, positive reinforcement, time-out and overcorrection procedures was provided to educators over a 2-year period. Students were taught five specific norms for which they received stamps and diplomas. A 'timeout classroom' was designed for inappropriate behavior. Parents' opinions about the program were also sought. 'Assertive Discipline' is defined as the positive influence teachers can exert over their pupils' behavior. The program served to teach educators that children have a right to: a teacher who is prepared to help them recognize the limits of inappropriate behavior; a teacher who is ready to give positive approval to the pupil's appropriate behavior; and a right to choose specific behavioral goals and know their consequences. School contracts were introduced for those children who did not respond satisfactorily to group contingencies. The assertive discipline program was successful in teaching educators to react with consistency to their students' behavior.

The effects of contingent music and differential reinforcement on infantile colic

Infantile Colic is a behavioral syndrome characterized by paroxysms of excessive crying and increased motor activity, hypertonicity of the musculature, excessive flatus and erratic sleeping and feeding patterns. Ten to 40% of all infants are diagnosed as having Colic. The medical evidence to date does not justify any conclusions regarding the etiology or treatment of Colic. Typically, parents are advised to simply wait until Colic has run its course which is often 3–4 months. The behavioral program reported here was designed to increase behavior that competed with crying by reinforcing quiet alertness with music and parental attention. Concurrently, it attempted to inhibit excessive crying by a brief time-out procedure. A group of 8 infants diagnosed as Infant Colic were included in this study. The dependent variable, crying, was measured through direct observations based on hourly samples involving 30 observations of 2-min intervals. The independent variable consisted of a behavioral treatment package. A within- S reversal design was used to assess the functional properties of the treatment. The results show that across all 8 infants the introduction of the treatment package led to a substantial decrease in excessive crying of about 75% of the initial baseline. Further, a functional relationship was identified between the treatment and excessive crying behavior: crying decreased when the treatment was initially introduced, it resumed when the treatment was withdrawn and decreased again when the treatment was reinstated.

Monitoring effects of timeout: A comparative analysis of response trends across five- and two-hundred-minute time samples

In this single-case study, the dangerous mouthing behavior of a 5-year-old multihandicapped boy was treated with a response-contingent, timeout procedure in a public school setting. Using an A-B-A-B experimental design, treatment effects were compared for 5- and 200-min time samples. Results indicated high frequencies of mouthing during nontreatment conditions, which rapidly decelerated when timeout was in effect. The mouthing patterns captured in the 5-min samples represented a microcosm of the mouthing trends displayed in the 200-min samples, calling into question the need to conduct the longer assessments. Treatment effects were maintained at 30- and 45-day follow-up assessments; clinical implications are discussed.

Establishing Time-out Procedures in a Day Treatment Facility for Young Children

Attempts by a day treatment facility for young children to comply with legal and ethical issues in its implementation of time-out procedures and physical restraint are described. Time-out procedures are discussed in terms of least restrictive to most restrictive. A case study is presented to demonstrate how a student may move from seclusionary time-out, most restrictive, to contingent observer, less restrictive.

Comparative effects of a time-out contingency when combined with alternate methods of reinforcement

In the present single-case study, the aggressive behaviors of a 10-year-old boy were treated with a response-contingent, exclusionary time-out procedure in two special education settings. The effects of intervention when combined with two methods of reinforcement were compared: (1) a DRO procedure that reinforced the absence of aggression, and (2) a general classroom token economy for task completion. The time-out procedure produced dramatic reductions in responding and was equally efficacious with either method of reinforcement. Treatment effects were maintained at 4- and 8-month follow-up assessments; clinical implications are discussed.

Symbolic modeling and parent behavioral training: Effects on noncompliance of hyperactive children

Six children, stabilized on psychostimulant medication and diagnosed as attention-deficit disorder with hyperactivity, underwent, with their mothers, a treatment program which consisted of symbolic modeling and parent training. Symbolic modeling, which required the children to view videotaped sequences of the same-sex and age-equivalent models complying with parental commands, was of limited effectiveness in bringing about better compliance. Phase one of parent training, which taught mothers appropriate attending, ignoring, and rewarding behaviors, was more effective than symbolic modeling alone. Phase two of parent training, which incorporated a time-out procedure for noncompliance, was most effective. Follow-up questionnaire data obtained at six months indicated maintenance of treatment effects.

A behavioral feeding program for failure-to-thrive infants

Infants acquire the ability to discriminate environmental contingencies at an early age. Paradoxically, in the case of infants classified as failure-to-thrive, maladaptive feeding behavior often becomes a part of the infant's repertoire despite the detrimental consequences of such behavior for the infant's health (e.g. weight loss, growth failure). Due to the chronic nature of the infant's behavior, the majority of successful behavioral treatments for this disorder rely on aversive procedures. While these procedures are effective in eliminating maladaptive feeding patterns, they fail to directly establish normal eating behavior. The feeding program reported here was designed not only to eliminate maladaptive feeding patterns but additionally, to promote normal eating behavior. Specifically, this feeding program consisted of a package of procedures including: (1) the use of music to mask the introduction of feeding time and to consequate eating behavior; and (2) the use of a time-out procedure to consequate food refusal behavior and to prevent mother-infant interactions which may have been maintaining the feeding problem. An AB design with replication was used to assess the effectiveness of this feeding program with 3 infants diagnosed as nonorganic failure-to-thrive. Partial withdrawal probes were implemented to demonstrate the functional relationship between the music component of the program and the infant's eating behavior. Upon implementation of the feeding program all 3 infants demonstrated rapid increases in rate of food acceptance and reductions in rate of vomiting and gag responses. In addition, rate of food acceptance was found to increase or decrease in relation to the presence or absence of music.

Timeout Use with Behaviorally Disordered Students

The use of timeout procedures by teachers of behaviorally disordered students has received widespread attention in the literature. Research has been conducted, and opinion papers written suggesting guidelines and appropriate use of this intervention. The actual “state of practice”, however, has not been as thoroughly assessed. This study used a questionnaire to ask teachers of behaviorally disordered students if they used timeout procedures, and if so, to describe some of the parameters of that usage. Results are discussed and suggestions offered for improving the current practice.

Characteristics of the mentally retarded adolescent offender and their implications for residential treatment design

AbstractWhile numerous residential programs for mentally retarded adolescent offenders have been established throughout this country, no empirically‐based population characteristics have been compiled which are sufficient to guide their systematic design. This study assessed 65 such young offenders along various treatment‐relevant dimensions, and used the resultant data to portray an average, hypothetical youth. Based on that profile, a compatible habilitation model was derived. It was concluded that a basic point economy, augmented by timeout procedures and supported by a secure (locked) setting, seems to be a viable approach for initiating treatment with these youth. Thereafter, programming should continue in a nonsecure group home, and finally, on an outpatient basis, in the generic community service system.

The use of paradoxical intention with oppositional behavior in the classroom

Time-out procedures often seem to be overused by teachers and tend to emphasize a linear view of problem behavior. Paradoxical strategies appear to provide a change in the dynamics of the teacher-child relationship and are thus a more systemic way of viewing the behavior. Three case studies are presented where the paradoxical strategies have varying degrees of success. The cases are discussed in terms of the critical aspects of the approach, as demonstrated in the case studies.

Brief report use of nonexclusionary timeout for the elimination of a stereotyped behavior

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of a non-exclusionary timeout procedure in reducing a high-frequency stereotyped behavior in a 28-year-old profoundly mentally retarded and autistic male. The experimental design consisted of baseline (A), treatment (B), and 1- and 6-month follow-up studies. After 2 weeks of treatment, the target behavior was reduced to a virtually zero rate of occurence and the low rate of response was maintained throughout follow-up. Findings suggest that nonexclusionary timeout may prove to be a cost-effective intervention for reducing or eliminating disruptive stereotyped behaviors. The need for further research is indicated.

Application of Immobilization Time-Out in Management Programming with Developmentally Disabled Children

Time-out procedures are employed frequently in management programming with developmentally disabled persons. However, in some cases, use of time-out is rendered ineffective because the client is able to engage in alternative undesired behaviors during the time-out period. The present studies examined the effects of an immobilization time-out procedure to address this difficulty with two developmentally disabled children. The procedure consisted of holding the children in a seated position during the application of time-out. In Study I, immobilization time-out produced a dramatic reduction in tantrumous and aggressive behaviors of an autistic-like girl. In Study II, the procedure was effective in reducing aggression of a mentally retarded boy. For both studies, immobilization time-out proved to be a more efficient intervention when compared to differential reinforcement methods alone. Effects of treatment were long-lasting as revealed during follow-up observations occurring one to six months form conclusion of the studies. Relevant issues regarding the implementation and acceptability of immobilization time-out are discussed.

The Use of an Aversive Smell to Eliminate Autistic Self-Stimulatory Behavior

Commercially available smelling salts were used to provide an aversive smell which was compared with a time-out procedure in the modification of self-stimulation in an autistic child. The aversive smell was much more effective that time out whether applied on an FR 1 or VR 3 schedule. The FR 1 schedule of the aversive smell was also associated with a marked decline in self-stimulation in non-experimental environments. The effectiveness, ease of application, and acceptability of smellin salts all indicate the value of continued research with this stimulus in the elimination of self-stimulatory and other autistic responses.

Behavioral school psychology goes outdoors: the effect of organized games on playground aggression.

This research focuses on the inappropriate, largely aggressive, behaviors of 344 K-2 children assigned to a playground prior to the beginning of the school day. Initially, a system for observing large numbers of children freely roaming over a large, open area was developed. This observational method was then used to determine the effectiveness of providing organized games for reducing potentially dangerous playground behaviors. Using a reversal (ABAB) design, it was found that the games, rope jumping, and foot racing, along with an infrequently used time-out procedure, significantly reduced the frequency of inappropriate incidents. It is suggested that when dealing with large groups, antecedent environmental manipulations may be more practical than providing consequences for the behaviors exhibited by identified individuals.

The Effects of Warned Versus Unwarned Time-Out Procedures on Child Noncompliance

Mothers of twenty-four noncompliant, clinic-referred, preschool children were trained to use either a warned or unwarned time-out procedure in a clinic analog setting to suppress child noncompliance to commands. Warnings respecified the command to be followed and labeled the time-out procedures were equally effective at increasing child compliance. However, warned time-out procedures were associated with fewer actual time-outs than unwarned time-out procedures. The potential benefits of warned time-out procedures are discussed and future research needs are indicated.

Time-Out in the Treatment of Childhood Behavior Problems:

Even though time-out procedures have been subject to extensive empirical investigation and are often assumed to be the appropriate treatment for a variety of childhood behavior problems, there are implementation problems and complexities, which often go unrecognized in the literature. This article presents a comprehensive model detailing procedural parameters, as well as subject and situational factors, which should be explicitly recognized and considered in utilizing, and empirically investigating, time-out. Also presented are methodological and theoretical issues relevant to researches and practitioners.