Timeouts have increased in popularity in the post-spanking age of parenting, and TOPR is currently the most common form of discipline in the U.S., second only to “verbal explanations.” The key to effective timeouts, however, is ensuring that children have something to lose when they’re separated from the family. “In other words, enhancing the positive relationship between parent and child (“time-in”) was necessary for timeout to be effective.”
Timeouts are not effective as “a stand-alone parenting strategy rather, it was part of a stepped process, in which effective implementation was dependent on mastery of positive reinforcement of the child as a first step,” University of Sydney researchers Mark Dadds and Lucy Tully wrote in the study. So are timeouts effective? Timeouts, known as “time out from positive reinforcement (TOPR)” in the literature, can foster secure attachment, reduce negative behaviors, and even correct psychological problems resulting from past abuse and neglect - but only within the context of a secure, loving family. Experts in some corners have criticized timeouts for stoking insecurities and triggering children with traumatic histories, but a new paper from the American Psychological Association concludes that these alarmist claims aren’t true.
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