Isolation booth

An isolation booth is a cabinet used to prevent a person or people from seeing or hearing certain events, usually for television programs or for blind testing of products.

Isolation booth of a blind taste test lab

Its most visual use is on game shows, where an isolation booth (either portable or built into the show's set) is in use to prevent a contestant from hearing their competitor's answers, or in the case of Family Feud, their fellow family member/friend's response to the "Fast Money" survey questions. Examples of the former include Twenty-One, Win Ben Stein's Money, 50 Grand Slam, Raise the Roof, The $64,000 Challenge, Scrabble, Whew!, Solitary and Double Dare (the 1976 version entitled as such unrelated to the children's game show). Another use is to prevent the audience from shouting the answer to them, as seen on The $64,000 Question, The $1,000,000 Chance of a Lifetime, and Name That Tune.

Further measures may be taken to prevent the occupant from seeing/hearing anything that occurs outside the booth, such as a blindfold or sleep mask, or headphones that play music or are equipped with noise-cancelling technology.

The isolation booth concept has been used for comic effect at times. One example is the "Cone of Silence" used as a running gag on the comedy series Get Smart. This was a clear plastic device that fitted over the heads of Maxwell Smart and the Chief, intended to let them discuss sensitive issues without being overheard. However, it invariably malfunctioned to the point that the two could not hear each other at all without shouting. Another variation appeared on the game show Idiot Savants, as the "Cylinder of Shush," a plastic tube lowered over the contestant's head that muffled the host's questions somewhat.

Isolation booths are also frequently used in audio recordings, with non-reflective walls, lined with acoustic foam that eliminate potential reverberations.

Use as punishment

Some schools in the United Kingdom use "isolation booths" as a place of detention, being a small room in which a disruptive child is forced to sit alone and in silence,^[1] as part of a policy known as "occupy and ignore".^[2] In some cases, children have been punished in this manner for 22 hours in one week. In 2019, a child attempted suicide through overdosing, while confined to such a booth.^[3]

See also

• Acoustic board
• Recording studio

References

1. "Use of isolation booths in schools criticised as 'barbaric' punishment". the Guardian. 2 September 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
2. "Will schools ever learn?". Centre for peaceful solutions. April 15, 2019.
3. "Mother sues over daughter's suicide attempt in school isolation booth". The Guardian. April 15, 2019.