The effects of non-contingent self-restraint on self-injury

Abstract

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. © 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.