Decreasing motor stereotypy in leisure contexts: Analysis of stimulus control with response interruption and redirection
RIRD plus timed access shrinks motor stereotypy during downtime, but don’t trust it to stay low—check new rooms and new staff right away.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Falligant et al. (2020) worked with one teen with autism.
The teen rocked and flapped during free time.
The team used RIRD—stop, prompt a different move, praise—then let the teen rock for two minutes if he stayed quiet during work.
What they found
Motor stereotypy dropped in leisure time.
The drop did not stick to new places or new staff.
Stimulus control stayed shaky—behavior came back when cues changed.
How this fits with other research
Tassé et al. (2013) showed RIRD alone cuts motor stereotypy on the spot. Falligant adds timed access after RIRD, but the extra step still fails to lock in place-to-place control.
Esposito et al. (2021) also targeted leisure stereotypy, yet used stimulus-stimulus pairing instead of RIRD. Both teams saw less stereotypy, showing leisure settings can be tamed with very different tactics.
Ding et al. (2017) paired NCR and DRO with matched toys and saw cleaner generalization. Their sensory-matched reinforcers may explain why Falligant’s simple timed access did not travel as well.
Why it matters
If you run RIRD plus reward breaks, keep probes in new spots and with new people. Add matched sensory items or vary the timing of access to build broader control. Track generalization early so you can tweak the plan before stereotypy boomerangs.
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Join Free →After RIRD, let the client engage in the stereotypy for two minutes only if it stays zero during the task, then test in a fresh corner of the room.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
AbstractNoncontingent access to preferred stimuli and activities may decrease stereotypic behavior in individuals with autism or other developmental disorders. However, prompted engagement, response interruption and redirection (RIRD), and/or contingent access to stereotypy may be required to achieve clinically significant reductions in stereotypy. Antecedent stimuli may also be manipulated during intervention to establish stimulus control by signaling when stereotypy will receive programmed consequences. The purpose of the current project was to replicate prior research in this area by a) evaluating the effectiveness of RIRD on motor stereotypy in an adolescent with autism and b) providing contingent access to stereotypy as a function of successively longer intervals without stereotypic behavior. We also assessed the extent that these procedures gained acceptable stimulus control. Results from this project suggest RIRD and contingent access to stereotypy may effectively decrease motor stereotypy in leisure contexts, though consistent inhibitory stimulus control may be difficult to establish.
Behavioral Interventions, 2020 · doi:10.1002/bin.1703