An analysis and reduction of disruptive behavior on school buses.
A flashing noise meter plus group reward almost erased disruptive behavior on middle-school buses.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Researchers put a noise meter on two school buses. The meter flashed red when kids got too loud. If the bus stayed quiet, the whole group earned music or raffle tickets. They tested 60 middle-schoolers across two experiments.
The team counted disruptive acts like yelling, standing, or throwing things. They measured noise levels with a sound meter wired to the front of the bus.
What they found
Disruptive behavior dropped from about 30 acts per ride to almost zero. Noise levels fell by half. The change happened the first day the meter was turned on and lasted the whole school term.
When the meter was removed for a week, noise and misbehavior returned. They dropped again as soon as the feedback came back.
How this fits with other research
James et al. (1981) used the same sound-flash gadget, but to make quiet preschoolers talk louder. Same tool, opposite goal. Both studies show the device gives clear, instant feedback that shapes vocal behavior.
Neuringer et al. (1968) first showed that group rewards can change how kids act. Kendrick et al. (1981) moved that idea onto a moving bus and let the machine track behavior, not the teacher.
Hilton et al. (2010) later gave parents a book based on similar group reward ideas to cut problem behavior at home. The bus study proves the logic works even without adults watching every move.
Why it matters
You can cut bus chaos in one afternoon. Mount a cheap sound meter, set a quiet limit, and let the group earn music or a daily raffle. No extra staff, no tokens, no data sheets. The kids monitor themselves because their reward depends on each other. Try it on any group ride or noisy hallway.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Thousands of children are injured or killed each year in school bus accidents. A significant number of these tragic incidents is precipitated by disruptive child behavior that distracts the drivers from their difficult task. Two experiments were conducted which addressed this problem. For both experiments an automated sound recording device (referred to as a Noise Guard) selectively responsive to frequencies above 500 Hz (i.e., unresponsive to bus drone) recorded both the duration and frequency of noise outbursts above a tolerable threshold. Additionally, an observer made in situ measurements of other disruptions including roughhousing and getting-out-of-seat. In the first experiment, following baseline measurements of these behaviors, middle-school students received feedback for noise outbursts. That is, when "Noise Guard" was activated, it in turn operated one of several lights on a panel visible to all passengers. Each day students were allowed to listen to high-appeal taped music while riding the bus and to participate in a raffle for prizes, provided the number of outbursts on the preceding day remained below a specified criterion indicated on the light panel. This intervention resulted in drastic reductions of noise outbursts with a concomitant reduction in other disruptive behaviors. Comparable results were obtained in the second experiment which eliminated the raffle from the intervention.
Journal of applied behavior analysis, 1981 · doi:10.1901/jaba.1981.14-177