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Contingent observation: an effective and acceptable procedure for reducing disruptive behavior of young children in a
Insights
Caregivers can use contingent observation, a gentle discipline method, to reduce disruptive behaviors in young children. This involves instructing children on alternatives and having them briefly observe peers before rejoining play.
Area of Science:
- Child Psychology
- Early Childhood Education
- Behavioral Interventions
Background:
- Childhood development involves learning social skills and group interaction.
- Caregivers require effective strategies for managing disruptive behaviors in childcare settings.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and evaluate a humane and effective procedure for reducing disruptive play behaviors in 1- and 2-year-old children.
- To compare the efficacy of 'contingent observation' with traditional distraction/redirection methods.
Main Methods:
- A study was conducted in a day-care center with 1- and 2-year-old children.
- Caregivers implemented 'contingent observation': instructing the child on alternatives, followed by a brief period of observing peers ('sit and watch').
- This method was compared against a control group using instruction followed by distraction or redirection.
Main Results:
- Contingent observation was significantly more effective in reducing disruptive behaviors than distraction/redirection.
- Caregivers and parents found contingent observation to be an appropriate and socially acceptable method.
- The procedure helped maintain lower levels of disruptions during play activities.
Conclusions:
- Contingent observation is a recommended, effective, and socially acceptable intervention for managing disruptive behaviors in young children.
- This method supports children's social learning by providing explicit instruction and peer observation opportunities.
- The findings support the general use of contingent observation in early childhood education programs.
Abstract:
Since a major task of childhood is learning to get along in a group without disrupting other children's activities, caregivers need explicit guidelines for gentle but effective procedures for dealing with disruptive behaviors in child-care settings. In a day-care center for normal 1- and 2-yr.-old children, an effort was made to develop a procedure that appeared sufficiently humane and educational to be acceptable to parents and day-care workers, and yet effective in reducing disruptive play behaviors. Caregivers used the occasion of disruptive behavior to instruct the child in appropriate alternatives, then had the child sit on the periphery and observe the appropriate social behavior of the other children "sit and watch", for a brief period before inviting him or her to rejoin the play activities. The effectiveness of this procedure was compared with a method commonly recommended for the use with young children: instructing the child, then distracting or redirecting the child to an alternative toy or activity. Contingent observation, combining instruction with a brief timeout (from being a participant in an activity to becoming an observer of the activity), proved considerably more effective in maintaining low levels of disruptions and was considered by caregivers and parents to be an appropriate and socially acceptable method of dealing with young children's disruptive behaviors. Therefore, contingent observation can be recommended for general use in day-care programs for young children.