An Errorless Approach to Management of Child Noncompliance in a Special Education Setting

Abstract

Many commonly employed strategies used by teachers to manage noncompliance and problem behavior in the classroom focus on suppression of problem responses through reductive consequences. Errorless compliance training was developed to provide a nonaversive alternative to reducing child noncompliance and has been demonstrated effective as a home-based intervention approach for parents. In the present study, the effectiveness of errorless compliance training as a classroom approach in a special education setting was investigated. A graduate student implemented the intervention with two 5-year-old girls with Down syndrome, who demonstrated severe noncompliance to teacher requests. The intervention was associated with substantial increases in child compliance in the classroom.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Joseph M. Ducharme

Joseph M. Ducharme received his doctorate in Applied Psychology (School Psychology) in 1989 from the University of Toronto (Ontario Institute for Studies in Education). He is currently an associate professor in the School and Clinical Child Psychology Program at the University of Toronto (Ontario Institute for Studies in Education). His current research interests involve treatment of child behavioral difficulties in the home and classroom, and teacher training for classroom management.

Carolyn DiAdamo

Carolyn DiAdamo received her Master's degree from the School and Clinical Child Psychology Program at the University of Toronto (Ontario Institute for Studies in Education). She is employed as a psycho-educational consultant with the Toronto District School Board. Her research interests involve classroom management of disruptive behavior.