Introduction: Nail-biting disorder is classified among habitual behaviors in children and sometimes adults. This disorder often occurs subconsciously which means that people with this disorder don't realize their actions. Habit Reversal (HRT) is the most widely used method that has been used to treat this disorder. This study aimed to investigate the effect of HRT in improving and reducing the nail-biting disorder.
Methods: This study is a quasi-experimental repeated measure (without a control group).The pretest was assigned before the treatment carried out. Then independent variable added and finally post-test carried out. In two months after the end of meetings, a follow-up test was conducted. The research sample was five male students of the secondary school in Bukan city. They turned to school counseling assistance and asked for help about their nail-biting disorder. For evaluation, the frequency of nail-biting per day was recorded, clinical interview and the State-Trait Anxiety questionnaire also were used of.
Results: After the intervention, the frequency of nail-biting and state-trait anxiety were reduced. This reduction was sustained for up to two months after the meeting and none of the students did return to the previous conditions.
Conclusions: The method of HRT in the treatment of nail-biting, reduce anxiety and improve quality of life and reduce damage caused by this disorder. Due to limitations caused by a small number of participants in this study; It is recommended to repeat the study in a larger sample, and also study its efficacy in the treatment of other disorders.