The article describes the procedures and variables involved in planning, implementing, and evaluating timeout with exceptional students. Among steps considered are defining the target behavior operationally, analyzing situations, and determining type of timeout and supervision. (CL)

Timeout, a widely used approach with severely handicapped and deaf blind students, is nevertheless potentially aversive and should not become a routine procedure. The decision to employ timeout from positive reinforcement should be based on careful consideration of the child's behavior, the severity of the target behavior, and the need for…

Ten papers contributed by school psychologists or university educators working with school psychology programs review psychological theory and research on behavioral strategies for psychological intervention. Following an overview on the effective use of behavior modification in the school, nine behavior change methods are examined in terms of…

Consistent, unemotional use of timeout, without ancillary punishers, is shown to result in typical extinction curves (rather than the steeper gradient of punishment curves) for both autistic and mentally impaired children with widely different abrasive behaviors. Dangers of punishment and the therapeutic value of reduced environmental stimulation…

Three behavioral approaches to the management of behavior problems in the classroom are discussed. (PHR)

This article examines the body of case law which has developed over the appropriate use of various timeout procedures (e.g., exclusion, seclusion/isolation) of students with behavior disorders. Seven guidelines for the legally correct application of timeout procedures are offered. (DB)

Teachers used a nonexclusionary time-out package emphasizing ongoing participation to treat inappropriate social behaviors in 4 classrooms of roughly 16 preschool children each. Behavior improved in terms of several measures including direct observation. Opinions of treatment acceptability from a survey of 210 lay people were also found to support…

Fourteen students, aged 7-24, with severe developmental disabilities who exhibited frequent aggression, self-injury, and/or tantrums were assessed to engage in problem behavior maintained by social attention or by escape from unpleasant situations. The differential effectiveness of praise and time-out was measured, indicating the importance of…

Individuals (n=55) with mild to moderate mental retardation rated the acceptability of differential reinforcement and time-out. Community-based subjects and institutionalized subjects differed in their ratings depending on the severity of the problem. (DB)

Victimization is considered in terms of reciprocal behaviors between an aggressor and victim. The tendency to blame victims is noted along with suggestions from the research that bullies at school are victims at home. Among intervention strategies cited are group lessons on bullying, token reinforcements, rewards for teamwork, time-out for bullies…

This position paper discusses aversive conditioning and other behavior reduction procedures. Environmental modification, differential reinforcement, timeout, overcorrection, and corporal punishment are discussed in terms of current applications, with arguments for and against their inclusion in behavior modification. Eight guidelines are offered…

The effects of teacher praise, ignoring, time-out, and parental contingencies on the number of inappropriate behaviors of two mentally handicapped (IQ's 55 and 51) male students ages seven and nine were investigated in a one-year study. Both students reduced inappropriate noise and behavior, and the frequency of inappropriate behavior remained…

The study reduced the disruptive behaviors of students in 2 elementary physical education classes, including an alternative education class containing 14 fourth and fifth grade boys with severe behavior problems. A modified time-out procedure was used to reduce frequency of disruptive behaviors by 95 percent. (Author/DB)

The effects of a simple timeout procedure on the eye gouging and head wagging behavior of a totally blind, seven-year-old child were studied. Parent and staff reports suggested that the reduction in manneristic behaviors was associated with the emergence of more acceptable and age appropriate social behavior. (SEW)

This study found that, in a task context, differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) effectively reduced problem behavior and increased task performance of 2 adolescents with severe disabilities (ages 15 and 19), whereas a time-out procedure was ineffective. In a leisure context, time-out was effective while DRO was ineffective.…