Certified school psychologist and licensed behavior specialist, Rachel Wise, shares nine strategies to decrease impulsive behavior in children. Rachel has 20 years of experience working with students with academic and behavioral needs and is also the CEO of the free learning and behavior website, educationandbehavior.com.

1. 9 Practical Strategies to
Decrease Impulsive Behaviors in
Children
Hi, everyone! This is Rachel Wise, licensed behavior specialist and
certified school psychologist. I am also the CEO of the free learning and
behavior website, educationandbehavior.com! Thank you for joining me
today to review 9 Practical Strategies to Decrease Impulsive Behaviors in
Children. You can read the article version of this presentation on
educationandbehavior.com at
http://www.educationandbehavior.com/decrease-impulsive-behavior-
children

2. Impulsive behaviors can make everyday situations challenging for your
child and the people in his/her life. Impulsive behaviors are defined as
actions that occur quickly and seem to happen without thinking or
considering the consequences. Children diagnosed with Attention
Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often engage in impulsive
behaviors, but impulsive behaviors do not necessarily indicate that a
person has ADHD.

3. Here are some examples of impulsive behaviors:
-Hitting someone or throwing objects when angry
-Jumping off a dangerously high surface
-Throwing papers in class
-Running around in the library
-Grabbing materials off the shelf in a store
-Interrupting/Disrupting others while they are talking or working
-Stealing

4. Now we will discuss nine strategies to decrease impulsive behaviors.
1. Outline behavioral expectations for upcoming situations. Talk about what
behavior should look and sound like and what the activity will consist of.
For instance, if you are going to a restaurant, talk about what will happen
when you get there (e.g., wait to be seated, look at the menu, order your
food, etc.) and what your child’s behavior should look like (e.g., using an
inside voice, speaking respectfully while inside the restaurant, waiting nicely
for their food). Give your child specific positive feedback when you see
him/her following the behavioral expectations appropriately (e.g., you are
waiting very nicely for the food).
Related Article: An Interactive Story to Teach Kids About Restaurant Behavior

5. 2. Work with your child to develop self-awareness about his/her
behavior and problem-solving skills. When you and your child have a
free moment to talk and are both in a relaxed mood, help your child get
to know his/her impulsive times, how it affects himself and others, and
what alternative behaviors he/she could consider.

6. Things to think/talk about when exploring self-awareness with your
child as it relates to impulsive behavior:
• when do you tend to act impulsively?
• how does it affect you?
• how does it affect others?
• what can you do to ensure you don’t make impulsive decisions during
your trouble spots?
• how can emotions affect impulsivity?
• what are some alternative ways to handle your emotions?

7. Research suggests that children with impulsive behaviors such as those
diagnosed with ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder show
improvement when consistently taught pro-social behaviors such as
how to conduct themselves in different situations, how to identify
problems and brainstorm solutions, and how to recognize which
behaviors may be undesirable in certain situations. For more on these
research studies see Evidence-based Psychosocial Treatment for ADHD
Children and Adolescents at
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4025987/
and Improving Treatment Outcome for Oppositional Defiant Disorder in
Young Children at http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ805556.pdf.

8. 3. Have your child reward him/herself with a preferred activity or
item, for getting through a specific time period (e.g., dinner, school, or
homework) without any impulsive behaviors (behaviors that disrupt
the environment or are hurtful/inconsiderate to themselves or others).

9. 4. Encourage your to child observe his/her environment to notice if
he sees/hears others acting impulsively. Talk about what the individual
could have done differently. Discuss the situation and alternatives.

10. 5. Talk about the differences between impulsive and non-impulsive
behaviors/decisions. Try to visualize through real-life examples (as in
the pictures below) what those differences look like. Act out, show
pictures, or draw different scenarios. There are a ton of images on
Google that illustrate impulsive and non-impulsive behavior. For a fun
activity, ask your child to draw a picture of someone engaging in
impulsive and non-impulsive behavior.

11. 6. Children who have more down-time/unstructured time are more
likely to engage in impulsive behaviors. Help your child plan his day so
he knows what to do with himself. Fill it with preferred activities
(playing outside, video games, coloring, music) and non-preferred
activities (homework, chores, etc.). Less down time = less impulsive
behaviors.
Related Article: How to Use Schedules to Improve Children’s Behavior

12. 7. Explain to your child that once you get to be an adult, impulsive
behaviors are often not tolerated in the work place or
community. Discuss real-life consequences, such as being fired, thrown
out, or arrested, for certain types of impulsive behaviors (e.g., throwing
things in a public place, hitting someone at work, etc.).

13. 8. Exercise. Studies show that regular exercise helps reduce anxiety, aggression, and
hyperactivity, which can all put you at risk for impulsive behaviors.
For more on these research studies see:
Effects of Exercise and Physical Activity on Anxiety at
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3632802/
The Effects of Weight-Training Exercise on Aggression Variables in Adult Male Inmates at
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0032885599079001005
Exercise Improves Behavioral, Neurocognitive, and Scholastic Performance in Children with
ADHD at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3556380/
Related Article: Exercise Ideas to Support Kids with Autism and ADHD

14. 9. Accept that you will not be able to make all impulsive behaviors go
away. Some individuals just have somewhat of an impulsive personality
and while you want to make behaviors more appropriate, you don’t
want to stop someone from being themselves. Everybody can be a little
impulsive at times and in certain situations it can be a good thing. Just
keep in mind that if it is inconsiderate, hurtful, or disrespectful to
themselves or others it should be addressed.
Related Article: Top 10 Discipline Tips for Children with Oppositional
Defiant Disorder

15. Thanks again for joining me today to review 9 Practical Strategies to
Decrease Impulsive Behaviors in Children. This is Rachel Wise, CEO of
educationandbehavior.com, a site with dozens of research-based
strategies!
I would love to know what you thought of this presentation! You can let
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