eneral

sychology

 Greg and the Empty Toilet Paper Roll

At one time in my career I worked in an institution for retarded children. It was our custom to have the children in our ward take a nap after lunch. The children were lying contentedly on their mats and some were beginning to doze off. Although we almost always had at least two people present, things were peaceful so I didn't mind being alone.

Suddenly, there was a terrifying scream from the bathroom. The kind of scream people can only give when they are afraid of being killed. I ran to the bathroom and found Greg with his pants around his knees, trembling. I grabbed him and pulled him from the bathroom. Once he was in the bedroom he began to calm. I reentered the bathroom, but could find no trace of what could have produced this terror.

Greg was severely retarded and could not talk. My only option for finding out what caused Greg's terror was to speak with the ward attendants when they returned. One of the ward attendants immediately knew what the problem was when I described it to her.

She said, "I bet it's an empty toilet paper roll."

"What!!" I replied, incredulously.

We went into the bathroom and there inside one of the stalls on a dispenser was an empty toilet paper roll. Now most of us have experienced distress and dejection at the sight of an empty toilet paper roll. However, never had I seen this stimulus produce such intense fear. How had this toilet paper roll phobia developed? I will never know the answer to that question. However, I did know that this was a very terrible aspect of Gregg's life and one that should be eliminated.

Before I tell you about the treatment that I employed, you will need to know one more thing about Greg. He loved ice cream with a great passion. If Greg thought of a heaven, I have no doubt that it was filled with ice cream from one end to the other.

We began treatment by having Greg sit behind a table in a large room and eat ice cream. I stood about thirty feet away with my back to Greg. I held an empty toilet paper roll in my hand. I waited until Greg was enjoying his ice cream. Then I quickly turned around and showed the toilet paper roll for an instant. Greg dropped his spoon and ran from the room in terror. It was a very bad beginning.

The next day we repeated the scenario with one difference. In general, the closer a stimulus is to a person the more likely it is that it will produce a response. Therefore, I was about fifty instead of thirty feet away when Greg began eating his ice cream. He hesitated when I flashed the toilet paper roll, but continued to eat. The next time, I turned I showed him the roll for a few seconds longer. Each time I turned around, I gradually increased the time the roll was in his sight. After a few minutes, I was facing him with the toilet paper roll in my hand.

When he showed no signs of hesitation, I slowly began to move toward him. After I had approached about five feet, Greg dropped his spoon in his dish. Still, he did not rise from his chair. I waited for him to resume eating and moved no closer that day. It had been a good session.

On the following day, Greg was once more given ice cream. I began a few feet further from Greg than I had the previous day. I slowly moved toward him. He paused for an instant, but then began to eat. I would advance a few feet and stop. He warily kept an eye on me and the toilet paper roll as he continued to eat.

Now I was standing directly in front of his table. I eased into a chair beside him. If he was going to bolt, this would be the time. He kept eating. Then I made a big mistake. I reached over to scratch his head. I was so happy that I quit thinking. My quick move could certainly increase the likelihood that the toilet paper roll would produce a phobic response. Also, it was likely that during treatment I had become associated with the toilet paper roll. Was I now a fear-producing stimulus? And if I did arouse fear, what would be the effect of my touching Greg? There was hesitation---then a loud SLURP!! We were home-free.

A ward attendant called Greg to the room the following day. He walked to the table, sat down, and began to eat his ice cream. Beside him on the table was an empty toilet paper roll. I quit work at the institution about a year and a half later to return to graduate school. As far as I know, Greg never again was afraid of toilet paper rolls.

This treatment technique is a modest variation on one developed in 1924 by Mary Cover Jones. Behavior therapists refer to this procedure as counter-conditioning. Counter-conditioning is defined as the replacement of a particular response to a stimulus by the establishment of another usually incompatible response.
 
 

Next Study Question

General Home Page