Objective: The purpose of the current study was to evaluate an alternative treatment to distraction for a child with disruptive behavior and medical anxiety. Method: Behavioral skills training and parent management training were used to address disruptive behavior, as a measure of distress tolerance, of a typically developing, 4-year-old white male, LeRoy, who presented with dysfunctional elimination syndrome and vesicoureteral reflux. A changing criterion single case design was used to evaluate the effect of procedures on rates of disruptive behaviors and seconds of appropriate waiting during exposures. Results: Results suggest LeRoy mastered an ability to appropriately wait for 150 s. Rates of disruptive behavior decreased by 94.61% during delayed gratification as well as 83.33% and 54.17% for his two medical procedures, respectively. Conclusion: The current procedures were successful in treating the patient’s disruptive behavior and medical anxiety. The procedures pose a potential alternative treatment to distraction techniques for children who require frequent medical procedures that evoke disruptive behavior.
Implications for Impact Statement
Children who experience medical anxiety and associated disruptive behavior may benefit less from distraction techniques when medical tests and procedures are so frequent that children habituate to distractions. The current study outlines procedures for increasing child tolerance for delayed gratification and medical procedures through parent-implemented treatment. Parental use of procedures likely served as an incompatible response to parental accommodation, allowing for therapeutic effects of exposures.
