Behavioral reduction of overt hallucinatory behavior in a chronic schizophrenic.
A 60-year-old chronically schizophrenic man who displayed verbally aggressive hallucinatory outbursts in a nursing home was placed on a contingent exercise program to decrease the hallucinations. Baseline demonstrated a daily average of 4.66 episodes per day. A 20-week intervention decreased these episodes to 0.34 per day. This 92% decrease was accomplished by contingently walking the subject in a hallway until he was quiet. Psychotropic medication increased during baseline had no effect on the target behavior. This mildly aversive program indicates that overt hallucinatory behavior seems to have at least a partial environmental base.
Belcher
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Rhode Island College, Providence 02908
D001521:Behavior Therapy; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006212:Hallucinations / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D005082:Physical Exertion; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000628:therapy; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology