Behavior modification: effects on reverse tailor sitting in children with cerebral palsy

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Behavioral Therapy
• Rehabilitation Medicine

Background:

• Reverse tailor sitting is a common postural habit in children with cerebral palsy.
• Effective interventions for managing reverse tailor sitting are needed.
• Understanding the impact of behavioral interventions on sitting posture is crucial for improving functional outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the effect of rewarding desirable sitting positions in children with cerebral palsy.
• To compare the effectiveness of rewarding alone versus rewarding combined with prompting desirable positions.

Main Methods:

• Six children with cerebral palsy (mean age 3.7 years) participated.
• Sitting behavior was documented at home under pretreatment and treatment conditions.
• Treatment involved rewarding non-reverse tailor sitting positions, with half the subjects also prompted to sit in desirable positions.

Main Results:

• All subjects showed significant increases in desirable sitting frequency and duration with treatment.
• Children prompted to sit in desirable positions showed greater initial increases.
• Some improvement in desirable sitting was observed in a different setting for four subjects.

Conclusions:

• Behavioral rewards are effective in increasing desirable sitting positions in children with cerebral palsy.
• Prompting may enhance initial treatment effects but requires further investigation.
• Further research is recommended for managing reverse tailor sitting in home and school environments.