Using Time Out Effectively

Joel Farb, M.A., The Center for Behavior Therapy Time out has been used as a practical and effective behavior management technique for more than 30 years. hen used correctly! it can be a po"erful tool for reducing problem behaviors "ith children ages # $ through %#. There are many misconceptions about time out. &irst! time out is not 'cool(do"n!) or 'thin*( time.) +nstead! it is the removal of the opportunity to obtain positive reinforcement for a specific behavior. This article summari,es the *ey rules for using time out effectively. -any of these procedures are described in detail in a "ell("ritten! parent(friendly volume by .ynne Clar*! /h.0.! called 1O12 3elp for /arents. The length of time out is one minute for each year of developmental age. &or e4ample! time out "ould last 5 minutes for a 5(year old child. /lease note that this period of time is the amount of time spent in the time out area6 not the amount of time that the child must be quiet "hile in time out. This is a common misuse of time out. Time out should be done in a boring place such as the bathroom, the hall, a stairwell, or other area where there is likely to be little entertainment. 7 tall! straight(bac*ed chair in a boring place can be used for children through age 8. &or children 5 through %#! the bathroom is preferable 9of course! "ith dangerous ob:ects removed;. Use a kitchen timer to monitor the length of time out. Using a timer frees the parent from the monitoring role and eliminates calls from the child such as! '+s time out done yet<) 1et the timer "hen the child sits in the time out chair or enters the time out place. Time out begins "hen the child enters the time out area6 not "hen the child becomes quiet. When sending a child to time out, use a simple instruction with fewer than ten words such as, No fighting, go to time out. =esist the urge to lecture or scold. The child should be instructed to go to time out within !" # seconds of the problem behavior. 7s "ith all consequences of behavior! time out is most effective "hen it occurs immediately.

$or every ! seconds of delay or arguing after the instruction to go to time out, add one additional minute up to a ma%imum of five additional minutes . &or e4ample! the child argues for %0 seconds! say! 'That>s one more minute.) +f the arguing or negotiating continues for another %0 seconds! say! 'That>s t"o more minutes!) etc. &o not speak or attend to the child during time out. 0o not even ma*e eye contact. If a young child (under age 6) leaves time out before the time is up, simply place the child back in the time out chair without speaking or making eye contact. 'f an older (i.e. ages )" *+ child refuses to go to time out or leaves time out early, withhold a preferred activity or other reinforcer until the child completes the time out. &or e4ample! '?ou have no T@ until you do your time out.) +f the child continues to refuse to go to time out! "ithdra" another preferred activity. 0o not "ithdra" more than t"o activities. These activities must be "ithheld until the time out is completed or until the ne4t day. 0o not carry a consequence into the ne4t day! as such a consequence is far too delayed to be effective. When time out is over, you may say, Time out is over. 0o not counsel or discuss the behavior that resulted in time out. There is no evidence that discussing the infraction adds any positive effect to time out! and it may even reduce the effectiveness of time out by providing attention at the end of the process. 'f the child is still crying or shouting at the end of the time out period, set the timer for one additional minute (or two additional minutes for a child over )+ . =epeat this procedure! as needed! up to three times. 1ay only! 'That>s 4 more minuteAs for you to get quiet!) and do not ma*e eye contact. +f crying or shouting persists beyond this point! :ust ignore. Bote2 +n no case should the child be permitted to leave time out "ithout loss of a preferred activity unless heAshe has been quiet for a minimum of 30 seconds. 1tart by using time out for only one behavior 9e.g.! hitting! profanity! etc.;! and plan to

continue using time out consistently for at least four "ee*s. +n the beginning! the child "ill li*ely test your persistence. -easure your progress by trac*ing the daily frequency of the selected behavior. &or children ages C(%#! describe the time out procedure "ith them before you start. E4pect ob:ections. +gnore these and do not negotiate. +f you must spea*! say only! ' e>re going to do is.) +f ob:ections persist! "al* a"ay. 0o not engage in debate. The boo* by .ynn Clar* 9see belo"; "ill provide a good reference for using time out effectively. The article by Deffrey 0anforth provides a more in(depth! detailed study.

References: Clar*! .ynn! 1O12 3elp for /arents 9%EFG;. Bo"ling Hreen! I?2 /arents /ress. 0anforth! Deffrey 1. The outcome of parent training using the Behavior -anagement &lo" Chart "ith mothers and their children "ith oppositional defiant disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Behavior modification! 9%EEF; ##9C;! CC3(CG3.

,uestions and -nswers about Time .ut

Where is the best place to do time out/

Generally, the child's room is not a good place to do time out unless the sources of entertainment have been removed. Time out, by definition, means time out from access to positive reinforcement. Time out must be done in a boring place, and the child's room is often anything but boring. For children ages 5 and under, time out should be done in an adult-sized chair in a boring place such as a hall, the dining room, or other low-interest area. For children -!", the bathroom can be a very effective place for time out #see the boo$ by %ynn &lar$ noted at the end of the article in the last newsletter'. (verall, time out can be done anywhere, provided there is limited access to sources of positive reinforcement.

)ut what if my child ma$es a mess in the bathroom during time out*

+ave the child thoroughly clean up the mess before leaving the bathroom at the end of time out. ,f your child has a history of brea$ing ob-ects, obviously, you should remove high-ris$ ob-ects from the time out place before you begin using it. .a$ing a mess in the bathroom has been reported on occasion, but this typically responds well to the consistent re/uirement that the child must clean up the results.

0hat do , do if my young child #" !1" - 5' $eeps getting out of the time out chair*

2ou gently pic$ the child up from behind, and replace him1her in the chair without spea$ing or ma$ing eye contact. Then, immediately step about " !1" to 3 feet away from the chair and wait. 4epeat this process as necessary. 5ome children

may attempt to escape time out a number of times when the procedure is first started6 however, most children learn to sit through a developmentally appropriate time out #i.e., one minute for each year of developmental age' after the first day or two.

0hen does the time out period start* ,sn't time out a certain re/uired period of /uiet*

The second /uestion is a common misconception with no clear origin. ,t certainly does not come from the research in applied behavior analysis. The time out period starts when the child enters the time out place. The time out period should be monitored using a $itchen timer and is one minute for each year of developmental age #i.e., 5 minutes for a five- year old child who is not developmentally delayed'. The only time period of /uiet that is re/uired is !5-37 seconds of /uiet when the time out is completed. This short period of /uiet pairs leaving time out with /uiet. .ost importantly, time out begins when the child enters the time out place6 not when the child is /uiet. This is a very common misuse of time out.

0hat do , do if my older child # -!"' refuses to go to time out*

8dd one minute of time out, up to a ma9imum of 5 minutes, for every ten seconds of delay in going to time out. For e9ample, if after instructing your child to go to time out, the child begins to argue, you should ignore the arguing, silently count ten seconds, and then say, :That's one more minute of time out.: Then, be /uiet. ,f the arguing or delay continues, repeat the procedure, and e9tend the number of minutes by one each time as needed #e.g., :That's two more minutes of time out.:'. 4emember, the ma9imum additional time out is 5 minutes.

0hat do , do if my older child still refuses to go to time out or leaves

time out* 0ithhold a preferred activity or reward until the time out is completed. For e9ample, :2ou have no computer until you do your time out.: ,f the child continues to refuse to go to time out, you may withdraw another preferred activity, #e.g., music, T;, telephone, etc.'. <o not withhold more than two activities, and this is only for the current day.

0ill time out damage my child's self-esteem*

To my $nowledge, there is no evidence of this in the clinical literature. , include this /uestion because it came up during some recent presentations. 0hile there may be some professionals who :say: this, until they can produce some e9perimental evidence, it's -ust an unsupported opinion. 8 $ey /uestion to as$ any professional who ma$es this statement is, :&ompared to what, and what is the evidence*:

+ow do , use time out in a public place*

,n some places, this can be difficult. +owever, in many public places, there are restrooms, dressing rooms, and other areas where time out can be done. 0ith some children, time out can be done on a bench in the shopping mall. For some children, time out can be done in the car. ,n this case, you would ta$e the child #or children' out of the restaurant #for e9ample' and do a time out in the car. 2ou sit /uietly in the front seat or remain outside of the car.

,s time out effective with adolescents*

Time out, as described in this series of articles, has limited effectiveness with adolescents, but there are variations of time out which are more effective with older children and teenagers. 5ome of these will be described in future articles.

=eprinted "ith permission from &all #000 and

inter #00% Be"sletter