Time‐out is a negative punishment procedure that parents and teachers commonly use to reduce problem behavior; however, specific time‐out parameters have not been evaluated adequately. One parameter that has received relatively little attention in the literature is the mode of administration (verbal or physical) of time‐out. In this study, we evaluated a procedure designed to reduce problem behavior and increase compliance with the verbal instruction to go to time‐out. Specifically, we reduced the time‐out interval contingent on compliance with the time‐out instruction. Six preschool‐aged boys participated in the study. Time‐out effectively reduced the problem behavior of all 6 participants, and the procedure to increase compliance with the time‐out instruction was effective for 4 of 6 participants.