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The Effects of Non‐Contingent Self‐Restraint on Self‐Injury
Author(s) -
Kerth Denise Marzullo,
Progar Patrick R.,
Morales Sabrina
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.056
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1468-3148
pISSN - 1360-2322
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-3148.2008.00487.x
Subject(s) - psychology , autism , developmental psychology , clinical psychology
Background Self‐restraint is a pervasive phenomenon among individuals who engage in self‐injurious behaviour (SIB). Materials and Methods The present study examined the use of clothing as a socially acceptable alternative to self‐restraint to reduce SIB and other topographies of self‐restraint in an adolescent diagnosed with autism. Two separate functional analyses were conducted for SIB prior to the self‐restraint evaluation. A reversal design was then used to evaluate the effect of non‐contingent access to a hooded sweatshirt on rates of self‐restraint and SIB. Results Both functional analyses suggested that SIB was maintained by access to tangible items, attention, and perhaps also by escape from demands. The results of the self‐restraint evaluation indicated that when access to a hooded sweatshirt was provided, rates of other topographies of self‐restraint dropped to zero and rates of SIB were reduced by 54% from baseline levels. Conclusions These results highlight the idiosyncratic relationship between SIB and self‐restraint and suggest that systematic evaluations of this relationship may lead to reductions in both behaviours.