Adult discipline as a factor in childhood imitation

The present study examined changes in two children's imitative behavior as a function of the model's use of timeout and differential attention. Subjects were two children, one classified by her parents, the other classified by his teacher, as highly oppositional to adult requests or commands. The former child was treated by the parents in the home setting; the latter child was treated by the teacher in a preschool setting. Results showed that the children's oppositional behavior varied predictably with the presence and absence of adult use of time-out and differential attention. As expected, imitative behavior of both children was greater during treatment periods than during baseline periods.This research was funded in part by a Faculty Research Grant from the Graduate School, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. We would like to extend our appreciation to Nancy Williams, Andrea Warming, Ursula Botbyl, Diane Childress, Tom Hunter, and Edward Fowler who served as observers, and to Ronda Warner who worked with Ernest in the University Nursery School.