Acceptability of reductive interventions for the control of inappropriate child behavior

Abstract

Teacher attitudes about the acceptability of classroom intervention strategies were evaluated in two experiments. In both, teachers read descriptions of an intervention that was applied to a child with a behavior problem. In Experiment 1, an evaluation of six interventions for reducing inappropriate behavior suggested that one was highly acceptable (DRO), one was highly unacceptable (corporal punishment), and four ranged from mildly acceptable to mildly unacceptable (DRL, reprimands, time-out, and staying after school). In Experiment 2, the acceptability of the same intervention (staying after school) was evaluated as a function of who implemented it (teacher vs. principal). Analyses suggested that the teacher-implemented intervention was perceived as more acceptable. In both experiments, interventions were rated as less acceptable by highly experienced teachers versus those newer to the teaching profession. In addition, there was a trend for the acceptability of an intervention to vary as a function of the severity of the behavior problem to which it was applied.