Student Behavior

WHAT

WHY

HOW ?

4 Functions of Behavior

A behavior that a person engages in repeatedly will typically serve some kind of purpose or function for them

Essentially, kids do stuff for a reason

• even if it is non-sensical
• a reinforcer exists, so it continues.

Behaviors essentially serve 2 functions:

What are the functions?

Social Attention

A person may engage in a certain behavior to gain some form of social attention or a reaction from other people.

For example, a child might engage in a behavior to get other people to look at them, laugh at them, play with them, hug them or scold them.

For example, a child might engage in a behavior to get other people to look at them, laugh at them, play with them, hug them or scold them.

#Tangibles or Activities

Some behaviors occur so the person can obtain a tangible item or gain access to a desired activity.

For example, someone might scream and shout until their parents buy them a new toy (tangible item) or bring them to the zoo (activity).

Escape or Avoidance

Not all behaviors occur so the person can “obtain” something; many behaviors occur because the person wants to get away from something or avoid something altogether

For example, a child might engage in aggressive behavior so his teachers stop pushing academic tasks on him or another child might engage in self-injury to avoid having to go outside to play with classmates.

Sensory Stimulation

The function of some behaviors do not rely on anything external to the person and instead are internally pleasing in some way they are “self-stimulating” They function only to give the person some form of internal sensation that is pleasing or to remove an internal sensation that is displeasing (e.g. pain).

For example, a child might rock back and forth because it is enjoyable for them while another child might rub their knee to sooth the pain after accidentally banging it off the corner of a table. In both cases, these children do not engage in either behavior to obtain any attention, any tangible items or to escape any demands placed on them.

How can this help me

instead of respondiong to the what

A functional behavior assessment

Two critical steps

• observation
• interview

What happened before and what happened after?

Ask mom or Dad

Plan

COMPLIANCE

OUTBURSTS

COMPASSION

#keep on truckin