Functional Behavior Assessment

1. Functional Behavior Assessment Lisa Enns Margy Bailey Benton Stearns Education District February 11th, 2009

2. FBA Definition and Purpose • A functional behavior assessment is a process to determine the relationships between events in a person’s environment and the occurrence of challenging behaviors. • A functional behavior assessment is done to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of behavioral interventions.

3. IDEA Rights and Requirements • The team must explore the need for strategies and support systems to address any behavior that may impede the learning of the child with the disability or the learning of his or her peers (614 (d)(3)(B)(i));

4. Rights and Requirements cont. • In response to certain disciplinary actions by school personnel, the IEP team must, within 10 days, meet to formulate a functional behavioral assessment plan to collect data for developing a behavior intervention plan, or if a behavior intervention plan already exists, the team must review and revise it (as necessary), to ensure that it addresses the behavior upon which disciplinary action is predicated (615(k)(1)(B));

5. Outcomes of an FBA • An operational definition or description of the challenging behavior • An identification of the events and circumstances that are regularly associated with the occurence and the nonoccurence of the challenging behavior • A definition of the social function, purpose or communicative function of the challenging behavior.

6. When to do FBAs • Assessments for students with Emotional Behavioral Disorders • When challenging behaviors present themselves with students with Autism Spectrum Disorders or Developmental Cognitive Disabilities • As part of a review when a student is removed for 5 consecutive or more than 10 cumulative days.

7. Components of an FBA • Interviews • Observations • Structured • Unstructured • Behavior Checklists • Review of Records

8. ER Template FUNCTIONAL BEHAVIORAL ASSESSMENT: A functional behavior assessment was completed utilizing a variety of strategies including observations, interviews and a review of records. The following is a summary of the results of this assessment: • A description of the target behaviors and their frequency, severity and duration: • A description of the events, times and situations that predict the occurrence and nonoccurrence of the target behaviors: • A description of the antecedents, consequences and other reinforcers that maintain the target behavior: • A description of the apparent functions of the target behaviors and possible appropriate replacement behaviors:

9. ER Template continued • Documentation that the team has considered other treatable causes for the target behaviors, including mental or physical health condition: • A description of the positive behavioral interventions and supports and other strategies used in the past and the effectiveness of each: • A description of changes in the environment in which the target behaviors occur that may reduce the frequency of the behaviors: • Summary statements and hypotheses about the puposes of the target behaviors that will assist in the development of the child's behavioral intervention plan: • A description of any other evaluation data that may assist in the development of an appropriate behavior intervention plan for the child: • An evaluation of proposed regulated interventions and contraindication of any regulated interventions:

10. Challenging Behaviors • Behavior emitted by a learner that results in self-injury, or injury to others, causes damage to the physical environment, interferes with the acquisition of a new skill and/or socially isolates the learner • Doss & Reichle (1991)

11. Types of Challenging Behavior • Aggressive • Verbal • Physical • Disruptive • Talk-outs • Noises • Hyperactivity • Self-Injurious • Withdrawal/Internalizing • Shut-downs • Work refusal

12. Determining Target Behaviors • Formal Observations • ABC • Frequency • Interval • Narrative • Interviews • Teacher • Student • Parent • Information from Behavior Rating Scales • Behavior Assessment System for Children 2 • Scales of Independent Behavior – Revised • Behavior Evaluation Scale 3

13. Operationally Defining Behavior • Frequency • Severity • Duration

14. PredictorsEvents, Times, Situations This refers to facets of a students environment or daily routines that are not necessarily in place immediately before or after the undesirable behavior but still affect whether these behaviors are acted out • Medications • Sleep habits • Eating routines • Daily schedule • Number of people • Staffing patterns • Interactions

15. Antecedents • What occurs immediately before and sets up or sets off a behavior • Difficult behaviors are often situation specific • Antecedents may become the focus of your interventions

16. Consequences and Reinforcers • Consequence • What occurs immediately after a behavior • Reinforcer • A consequence provided after a response (behavior) that increases the probability that the response (behavior) will occur in the future • Positive reinforcer – delivery of a desired stimulus • Negative reinforcer – removal of an undesired stimulus

17. Possible Outcomes (Function) of Behavior • Escape/Avoidance • Attention • Self-Stimulation/Sensory • Power/Control • Acceptance/Affiliation • Expression of Self • Gratification • Justice/Revenge • Research supports the use of FBAs to determine the first three

18. Obtaining Desirable Events • Attention • Adult attention • Peer attention • Objects/Activities • Preferred activity • Tangibles

19. Avoid/Escape Undesirable Events • Attention • Reprimands • Peer negatives • Adult attention • Tasks/Events • Difficult tasks • Physical effort

20. Replacement Behaviors • Functional Equivalency • When two responses (e.g., the challenging behavior and the acceptable replacement) serve the same function • In serving the same function, both responses must occur within the same context and result in the same consequences

21. Replacement Behaviors • Identify functionally equivalent alternative behaviors the student already knows how to do. • Skill Deficit or Performance Deficit • Efficiency of behavior • Behaviors that are more efficient are more likely to be carried out • Ex. Screaming or shouting instead of raising hand or speaking calmly

22. Further Components Discussion • Other treatable causes • Past interventions, supports, and strategies and their effectiveness • Changes in the environment • Summary and hypotheses • Other evaluation data • Proposed interventions

23. Web resources • http://www.asec.net/ • http://www.interventioncentral.org/ • http://isd742.org/ • http://education.state.mn.us/mde/index.html