Reduction of feces smearing in a profoundly retarded resident through contingent behavior-specific restraint and reduced attention

A 20-year-old profoundly retarded male resident of a state institution with a 12-year history of faces smearing (FS) was treated using an A-B design employing response contingent elbow restraint and reduced-attention. The rate of FS dropped sharply after the first week of treatment and then declined steadily until stabilizing at a relatively low rate. Incidental behaviors indicated that aversive effects of the treatment procedure were both mild and behavior specific. Procedures and results are compared with other behavioral approaches to treatment of self-injurious behavior.