Effect of White Noise on Off-Task Behaviors

Running head: EFFECT OF WHITE NOISE ON OFF-TASK BEHAVIOR 1

Effect of White Noise on Off- Task Behavior for Students with ADHD

Erin Bosman

University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire

Author Note

Erin Bosman, Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire.

The current study was conducted as a fulfillment of a paper for University of

Wisconsin – Eau Claire Psychology 390: Advanced Behavior Analysis, supervised by Dr.

Kevin Klatt.

Correspondence concerning this research should be addressed to Erin Bosman,

Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire, Eau Claire, WI 54701.

Email: [email protected]

EFFECT OF WHITE NOISE ON OFF-TASK BEHAVIOR 2

EFFECT OF WHITE NOISE ON OFF-TASK BEHAVIOR 3

Abstract

There has been a significant amount of research done on increasing attention in

school, and decreasing off- task behaviors. Particularly, in children with

neurodevelopmental or learning disorders such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity

Disorder (ADHD). ADHD is often associated with careless mistakes in schoolwork or

other activities, difficulty sustaining attention, and easily distracted (American

Psychiatric Association, 2013). White noise played through headphones was used as a

classroom intervention to reduce off-task for two children with ADHD. Subsequently,

one of the children was taking a stimulant medication for his ADHD.

KEYWORDS ADHD, off-task behavior, white noise, academic performance

EFFECT OF WHITE NOISE ON OFF-TASK BEHAVIOR

Effect of White Noise on Off- Task Behavior for Students with ADHD

ADHD is often associated with sustaining attention, and being easily distracted or

displaying off-task behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention researchers found that less than 1 in 3 children with

ADHD receive both medication treatment and behavioral therapy. According to the CDC,

The preferred treatment approach for children ages 6 and older with ADHD is behavioral

therapy, and recommended before using medical treatment.

CDC Researchers found that approximately forty three percent of children are

treated with medication alone, and only thirteen percent are treated with behavioral

therapy alone ("Key Findings," 2016). Stimulant medication has been shown to appear to

improve behavioral symptoms and academic performance in individuals with ADHD

(Mcinnes, Bedard, Hogg-Johnson, & Tannock, 2007). However, as previously stated

behavioral therapy should be attempted first, or concurrently with medication. The

purpose of this study is to observe the effect of noise on academic performance for

individuals with ADHD, as a potentially effective behavioral treatment, that can be used

either independently or concurrently with stimulant medication. This expands on prior

research that has focused either specifically on individuals taking stimulant medication or

individuals with no medication, rather than comparing them concurrently. White noise is

described as a continuous sound from 20 to 20,000 Hz (Cook, Bradley-Johnson, and

Merle Johnson, 2014). Various studies have shown that noise appears to positively effect

on-task behavior for individuals with ADHD.

According to Söderlund, Sikström, and Smart (2007), stochastic resonance is the

idea that an optimal amount of noise under certain circumstances may be beneficial for

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cognitive performance. These researchers observed participants self-performance on both

a high memory and low memory task in the presence of or absence of white noise. Their

research showed that noise appears to lead to a positive significant effect of cognitive

performance for individuals with ADHD. However, noise appeared to have a negative

effect for individuals that did not have ADHD. They explained their research by

concluding that the results showed stochastic resonance. This was the first study to

specifically look into stochastic resonance for individuals with ADHD and the

researchers considered a variety of limitations. The researchers recommend that further

researchers examine more levels of noise, measure dopamine levels, and look into the

interaction between noise and medication.

Söderlund, Sikström, Loftesnes, and Sonuga-Barke (2010) advanced research by

examining the effects of background white noise on memory performance for inattentive

school children. Focusing on fifty-one secondary school aged children, they hypothesized

that a moderate amount of noise would enhance the performance of inattentive children,

but decrease the performance of attentive children, showing stochastic resonance similar

to the previously discussed study by Söderlund, Sikström, and Smart (2007). They

rejected the null hypothesis, as previous research in the area has done.

Focusing primarily on extra task stimulation with academic task performance for

children with ADHD Abikoff, Courtney, Szeibel, and Koplewicz (1996) used 3 levels of

extra task stimulation- high stimulation (music), low stimulation (speech), and no

stimulation (silence). Their research resulted in the conclusion that auditory stimulation

did not negatively affect participants with disabilities, or in the control group. It did

appear to benefit the academic performance of those with ADHD, while nondisabled

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participants performed similarly under all 3 conditions. This experiment focused on

arithmetic tasks and suggests that further research evaluates the influence of visual and

auditory factors, novelty of distractors, task content, difficult level, length of the task, and

presence or absence of the experimenter.

Cook, Johnson, and Bradley-Johnson (2015) observed the effects of white noise

on problem behaviors for a child with ADHD. They observed the participant while

listening to white noise, while taking stimulant medication, and while both listening to

white noise and taking stimulant medication. They found that off-task behavior decreased

for the individual in all three conditions. Off task behaviors decreased by 45% when both

white noise and stimulant medication were used concurrently. Limitations with this study

were that it only had one participant, the study ended when the school year ended, but

could have used a final phase, and the participant’s teacher found the intervention to be

difficult to implement.

Cook, Bradley-Johnson, and Merle Johnson (2014) focused on the effects of

white noise on off task behavior for students with ADHD. They observed 3 participants

who had been diagnosed with ADHD, all in different classes. They all were also taking

stimulant medications. The researchers used an ABCAC design: Baseline (A),

headphones with no white noise (B), and headphones with white noise (C). The results

showed that white noise appeared to result in lower levels of off-task behavior.

Concluded limitations were that some conditions were changed before previous phases

were stabilized, a functional analysis could have been helpful to determine the function of

the effects of white noise, the study could have looked at individuals who are not on

medication as well, and it could include other interventions commonly used instead of

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white noise.

The present study, a systematic replication of Cook, Bradley-Johnson, and Merle

Johnson (2014) focuses on students with ADHD. Cook, et al. (2014) focused only on

students with ADHD taking stimulant medication. The aim of this study is to extend

research by looking into the effect of white noise on students with ADHD that are taking

medication and those that are not taking medication. This study also adds an additional

variable of instrumental music to compare with white noise.

Method

Participants and Setting

Participants included two students who had been diagnosed with ADHD. Both

participants attended a public school. Both students were in the same third grade class,

with a class size of 25 students. All were struggling academically. John had been

prescribed stimulant medication. One participant was taking stimulant medication, and

one was not. John was prescribed 7.5 mg of Adderall while the other participant, Ben,

had not been prescribed medication. Medication for John was administered before school,

and dosage remained constant across all phases. All sessions were conducted in the

participants’ classroom while they worked on independent homework assignments.

Equipment

White noise generators were used to generate the white noise used to increase

participant’s focus. Volumes were calibrated by an audiology technician and were

recalibrated during the study with a portable decibel reader (Tenma Sound Level Meter,

Model 72–935). For the first type of behavioral intervention, white noise was delivered

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through Sony MDR-E818LP Fontopia headphones. The teacher's computer and speakers

was used to play the instrumental music, for the second type of behavioral intervention.

Dependent Variables and Measurement

Off-task behavior was operationally defined as talking to another student or the

teacher about something unrelated to the assignment, standing or walking while not

attending to the task, and looking at something other than the assignment or turning their

head away from the task. Observers recorded off-task behavior for approximately 15

minutes, unless the student finished the assignment early, during an independent

homework assignment 3 days per week. Therefore, Session durations averaged 15 min

for both John and Ben. Observers began to record off-task behavior at the beginning of

the participant’s assignments and stopped after the 15 minutes were complete.

For each assignment, a response product in the form of a completed worksheet

was generated to generate interobserver agreement. The teacher and experimenter

recorded the total number of task items, the number of items completed, and the number

of items completed correctly on the assignment. These data were summarized as the

percentage of items completed and the percentage answered correctly.

Procedure and Design

An ABCDACD single subject design was used. During baseline (A), no

headphones or white noise was presented. During Condition B, headphones only (no

white noise) were presented. Condition B was primarily to allow participants to adjust to

wearing the headphones. During Condition C (headphones plus white noise),

implemented the first type of behavioral intervention. White noise was delivered through

the headphones. During Condition D (music), the second type of behavioral intervention

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was implemented. Instrumental music was delivered through speakers on the teacher's

computer throughout the classroom. Prior to conducting the experiment, the experimenter

gave the teacher's instructions on how to effectively operate equipment and implement

the experiment. To reduce possible stigma, the teacher instructed students not to touch

the white noise generators or the computer as well as describing white noise and the

potential benefits of white noise of music in the classroom. The researcher then allowed

everyone in the class an opportunity to listen to white noise through the headphones.

During Conditions B (headphones only) and C (headphones plus white noise),

white-noise generators were placed under each participant’s desks. However, the

generators were turned on only during Condition C. Participants wore headphones during

Conditions B and C until assignment completion or the end of the 15-minute period. The

white noise could be heard only by the participants who wore the headphones and not by

other students in the classroom.

Throughout each condition, tape was placed over the volume dials to prevent

participants or other classmates from adjusting volume levels. Participants were required

to keep the headphones on throughout the entire task during condition B and condition C.

During condition D, instrumental music was played through speakers on the teacher’s

computer at a low level. During all conditions, the teacher managed their class as usual.

After the teacher passed out the worksheets, no further instruction or vocal prompt was

delivered.

Results

Figure 1 depicts the percentage of intervals of off-task behavior for John and Ben.

For all participants, off-task behavior during the headphones plus white-noise condition

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was lower than those during the baseline, headphones-only condition, and the music

condition. Off-task behavior was also lower during the music condition than it was during

the headphones-only or baseline condition. However, off task behavior decreased the

most during the white-noise condition. Results indicated that both these students

displayed lower levels of off-task behavior while they listened to white noise, suggesting

that this noise can reduce off-task behavior for students with ADHD on stimulant

medication and students with ADHD who are not prescribed medication.

Interobserver agreement was collected. Agreement was calculated by dividing the

number of intervals that both observers recorded off-task behavior by the total number of

intervals observed and converting the result into a percentage. Overall mean interobserver

agreement was 94%. Mean item-by-item agreement between the teacher and the observer

was 98%.

Discussion

Based on the results of this study and when taking in consideration the results of

past studies, it appears that white noise may be a useful option for individuals with

ADHD. It may be an effective option for several reasons. A significant reason for white

noise to be used for intervention is that it can be easily implemented in classrooms or at

home with little attention from the child's teacher or guardian. As discussed previously, it

is preferred that behavioral intervention is attempted either before or concurrently with

medication and white noise appears to be an effective form of behavioral intervention,

based both on this study and prior research. In addition, white noise also can be used both

at home and in public settings, making it a highly convenient form of behavioral

intervention.

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The results of this study, a systematic replication of Cook, Bradley-Johnson, and

Merle Johnson (2014) did not replicate the results exactly, but were similar. Cook, et al.

(2014) focused only on students with ADHD taking stimulant medication. I had one

participant taking stimulant medication, and one who did not. Another difference in my

study was the added condition of instrumental music. Limitations in prior research

discussed that future researchers should compare different types of participants, as well

as different behavioral interventions which lead to my decision to primarily change these

two things. Cook, et al. (2014) used three children who were in different classes, and all

taking stimulant medication. I used two children, all in the same class and only one of

them was prescribed medication.

The results for Cook, et al. (2014) found that the percentage of items completed

were consistent across participants, and for all conditions. However, results did indicate

that white noise appeared to result in less off-task behavior for all individuals. This

systematic replication of Cook, et al. has similar results, but expands research by

comparing an additional behavioral intervention (Condition D) with white noise as well

as having one participant not taking medication. The results for this replication indicate

that both behavioral interventions of white noise and instrumental music lowered the

amount of off-task behavior for individuals with ADHD. However, White noise appeared

to lower the amount of off-task behavior more significantly than instrumental music did.

This research extended previous research on noise as an effective behavioral

intervention however, further research can expand on the topic as there are a variety of

limitations with this study. Future research could benefit from using a larger sample size;

the more participants that the intervention is effective for, the more reliable it is. The

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current study only used two participants. The design type may make it difficult for a large

sample size, but future research could try to include at least six participants, three

prescribed with stimulant medication and three without medication. Furthermore, it could

be beneficial to look into more forms of behavioral intervention in comparison with white

noise. The current study focused on both white noise and music as potential behavioral

interventions, but it could be useful to compare with other common interventions as well.

In conclusion, results of this study indicate that white noise and music are both

effective behavioral interventions for children with ADHD. However, white noise does

appear to be slightly more effective than music. Both participants, were more attentive

and showed less off-task behaviors during intervention phases compared with baseline

data whether or not they were taking stimulant medication. This signifies that this is an

effective behavioral intervention both used singularly and used concurrently with

stimulant medication.

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Running head: Effect of White Noise on Off- Task Behavior

Figure 1. Percentage of intervals off-task for John and Ben.

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Baseline MusicHeadphone Only Base-

lineWhite

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MusicBL Music BLWhite noise

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23-10

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Observation Session

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Percentage of Off- T

ask Behavior

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EFFECT OF WHITE NOISE ON OFF- TASK BEHAVIOR

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EFFECT OF WHITE NOISE ON OFF- TASK BEHAVIOR

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Effect of White Noise on Off-Task Behaviors

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