Constant time delay with discrete responses: a review of effectiveness and demographic, procedural, and methodological parameters.

Constant time delay, a variation of progressive time delay, is a response prompting strategy designed to provide and remove prompts in a systematic manner on a time dimension. Constant time delay has two defining characteristics: (a) initial trials involve presentation of the target stimulus followed immediately by delivery of a controlling prompt; and (b) on all subsequent trials, the target stimulus is presented, a response interval of a fixed duration is delivered, the controlling prompt is provided, and a second response interval is delivered as needed. Reports of 36 studies using the constant time delay procedure with discrete behaviors were identified and analyzed. The results are described in terms of demographic variables (i.e., the types of subjects, settings, behaviors, instructors, and instructional arrangements), and the procedural parameters of the strategy. The effectiveness of the strategy and the outcome measures are summarized. Finally, the methodological adequacy of the constant time delay research is examined. Implications for practice and for further research are presented.

Use of constant time delay and attentional responses with adolescents.

This study investigated the effectiveness of a constant time delay procedure in teaching adolescents with learning or behavior disorders. Subject matter included social studies and health facts presented in small-group settings. In addition, the study assessed the effects of two attentional responses (general--looking at the target stimuli, or specific--repeating the teacher's question) on students' acquisition of other students' facts and of related nontarget information. Two types of feedback for correct responses were presented: praise plus additional information, and general praise only. Results of various measures indicate that (a) the constant time delay procedure was reliable and effective; (b) students not only acquired targeted facts with few errors, but also acquired some other nontargeted facts, such as information presented along with feedback; and (c) specific attentional responses facilitated acquisition of observational and incidental facts and maintenance of learning.