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Chapter 13
“Understanding Problem Behaviors through Functional Assessment”
Functional assessment – understand WHY the person engages in the behavior by determining the antecedent
events that evoke the behavior & reinforcing consequences that maintain it
o Always the first step in using behavior modification to increase a desirable beh & decrease or problem
behaviors
o process of gathering info about antecedents & consequences functionally related to the occurrence of a
problem beh
I.
Examples of Functional Assessment
1.1 JACOB
With Problem Behavior
With Treatment
Antecedent: Other kids play w/ Jacob’s toys
Antecedent: Other kids play w/ Jacob’s toys
Behavior: Jacob bangs his head, whines, &
Behavior: Jacob asks for his toys back
throws toys.
Con: The kids return Jacob’s toys to him.
Con: The kids return Jacob’s toys to him.
OUTCOME: Jacob is more likely to ask for his
OUTCOME: Jacob is more likely to engage in
toys back when other children play w/ his toys.
head-banging, whining, & toy-throwing when
other children play w/ his toys.
1.2 ANA
With Problem Behavior
Antecedent: Anna’s mother is not paying
attention to her.
Behavior: Anna hits, kicks, & screams
Con: Anna’s mother pay attention to her.
With Treatment
Antecedent: Anna’s mother is not paying
attention to her.
Behavior: Anna asks her mother for attention.
Con: Anna’s mother pay attention to her.
OUTCOME: Anna is more likely to hit, kick &
scream when her mother is not paying attention
to her
OUTCOME: Anna is more likely to asks for her
mother’s attention when her mother is not paying
attention to her at the time.
Note: When a child asks for attention as an alternative to the problem beh, the child may then ask for attention
so often that this beh itself becomes a problem.
 SOLN: W/ each successive request for attention, the parents wait longer & longer before responding.
Eventually, the child asks less often.
II.
Defining Functional Assessment
 One basic principle of beh analysis is that beh is lawful. Regardless of whether the beh is desirable or
undesirable, its occurrence is controlled by environmental variables.
 Functional Assessment—the process of gathering info about the antecedents & con that are
functionally related to the occurrence of a prob beh
o Provides detailed info about antecedent stimuli (time & place of behavior, people present when
the behavior occurs, any environmental events immediately preceding the behavior & frequency
of target behavior).
 This type of info on the 3 term contingency will help you to identify the antecedents that
have stimulus control over the beh & the reinforcing con that maintain the beh
o other types of info appropriate for developing appropriate treatments for problem behavior i.e.
existence of alternative behaviors that may be equivalent to problem behavior, motivational
variables, stimuli that may function as reinforcers for the person & history of previous treatments
& outcomes
CATEGORIES OF INFO FROM A FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT
Problem behaviors: an objective description of the behaviors that make up the problem
Antecedents: an objective description of environmental events preceding the problem behavior, including
aspects of the physical environment and behavior of other people
Consequences: an objective description of environmental events that follow the problem behavior including
aspects of the physical environment and the behavior of other people
Alternative behaviors: info on desirable behaviors in the person’s repertoire that may be reinforced to compete
with the problem behavior
Motivational variables: info on environmental events that may function as establishing operations to influence
the effectiveness of reinforcers and punishers for the problem behaviors and alternative behaviors
Potential reinforcers: info on environmental events—including physical stimuli and the behavior of other
people—that may function as reinforcers and be used in a treatment program
Previous interventions: info on the interventions that have been used in the past and their effects on the
problem behavior
III.
Functions of Problem Behaviors
Functions of Problem Behaviors – 4 broad classes:
1) Social positive reinforcement: A positively reinforcing consequence is delivered by another person
after target behavior which involves attention, access to activities or tangibles by another person i.e.
Anna’s attention and Jacob’s toys(tangible)
 These con make the beh more likely to occur
2) Social negative reinforcement: Another person terminates an aversive interaction/task/activity after
occurrence of target behavior
 E.g. child who complains to his parent when asked to do a chore gets out of doing the chore
 In each case, being allowed to escape from the chore or task strengthens or reinforces the
problem beh.
 Another e.g. Asking a friend not to smoke in your car is –vely reinforced by escape/ avoidance
of the smell of the smoke when the person puts out the cigarette or does not light in the 1st place.
3) Automatic positive reinforcement
 In some cases, the reinforcing con of a target beh is not meditated by another person, but rather
occurs as an automatic con of the beh itself.
 Reinforcing consequence of target behavior occurs as an automatic consequence of the behavior
itself
 E.g. autism who spins objects, rocks in his seat, of flaps his fingers in front of his face(do it bc
the beh produce reinforcing sensory stimulation)
 Going to the kitchen to get a drink is automatically +vely reinforced by getting the drink, VS
askin some1 else to get you a drink is socially +vely reinforced by getting the drink fr the other
person
4) Automatic negative reinforcement
 Occurs when target behavior automatically reduces/eliminate aversive stimulus as consequence
of the behavior & the beh is strengthened
 Doesn’t involve 3rd party, you do it for yourself.
 E.g.. closing the window to block a cold draft(asking some1 to close it for u involves social –ve
reinforcement), binge eating (has been found to be maintained by the reduction in unpleasant
emotional responses that were present b4 binge eating)
IV.
Functional Assessment Methods
Functional Assessment Methods
1) INDIRECT ASSESSMENT METHODS/INFORMANT ASSESSMENT: info is gathered through interviews &
questionnaires from the person exhibiting the problem behavior or from others who know the person
well
 a.k.a informant assessment methods—bc an informant(the client/others) is providing info in
response to assessment questions
ADVANTAGES?
i. Easy to conduct and do not take much time
ii.
number of interview formats and questionnaires are available
DISADVANTAGES?
i. Informants must rely on their memory of the event and may be incorrect b/c of forgetting or bias
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Because of convenience, interview is the most common assessment method used
A good beh interview generates info from the informant that’s CLEAR and OBJECTIVE
info about problem behavior, antecedents and consequences should describe environmental
events (includ behavior of other people) WITHOUT inferences or interpretation
o e.g. ―Johny has a tantrum beh when I tell him to turn off the TV & come to the dinner
table—the parent is providing info about environmental events that immediately precede
the problem
o another e.g.‖Johny has a tantrum when he doesn’t get to do what he wants—the parent is
interpreting the sit, does not describe specific environmental events
 The goal of the interview is to permit you to form a hypothesis about the controlling variables for
the problem.
 See p.244 for e.g. of antecedents & consequences questions
o If the parent does not provide specific info about environmental events in response to 1 or
more questions, the interviewer will ask for clarification until the parent provides info
that shows a clear pattern of events that precede & follow the problem beh
i.
Interview format—the interviewer asks the informant each question & records the
answer
ii. Questionnaire format—the informant reads each question & writes down the
answer
 Bc indirect fn assessment methods have the disavdvantage of relying on informants’ memories
of events researchers suggest using:
1) multiple functional assessment methods to produce the most accurate info
2)a behavioral interview + direct observation of the antecedents & con= provides useful
info to formulate accurate hypothesis
2) DIRECT OBSERVATION METHODS/ABC OBSERVATION
 observer records ABC as they occur
 the observer may be the person exhibiting the prob beh, or it may be another person associated
w/ the client, such a parent, teacher, staff person, nurse, beh analyst or psychologist
 Observer should be present in client’s natural environment when problem behavior is most
typically take place UNLESS observations occur while person is in treatment setting
(hospital/clinic)
 Direct observation assessment is also called ABC Observation
o the goal of the ABC observations is to record the immediate antecedents & con typically
associated w/ prob beh under normal conditions
ADVATANGES:
i. Observer is recording A & Cs rather than reporting on memory and is likely to be MORE
accurate
DISADVANTAGES:
i.
Take more time and effort
ii. do NOT demonstrate a functional relationship but rather a correlation of the
antecedents and consequences with the problem behavior b/c to demonstrate a
functional relationship exists, experimental methods must be used
 The devt of a hypothesis about the antecedents & con is the desired outcome of conducting ABC
observations

Your hypothesis about the controlling variables is strengthened when the info fr indirect assessment is
consistent w/ info fr the ABC direct observation assessment.
 to make ABC observations most efficient info from an interview may indicate where the problem beh
most likely to occur
o e.g. If a student has prob in 1 class but not in others, the observer should be present in that
particular class to observe & record the ABCs
Scatter plot: described a method to assess the time of day that the problem occurs most often
o if scatter plot shows the problem behavior usually occurs @ certain times of day, conduct ABC
observations @ those times
o if scatter plot DOESN’T reveal pattern in time, ABC observations would need to be scheduled for
longer periods of time
 The observer conducting the ABC assessment must be trained to observe& record the antecedents &
consequences correctly each time the prob beh occurs
o Must be able to discriminate each instance of the prob beh so that he or she can record the events
that immediately preceded & followed the beh
 observer MUST record antecedent and consequences immediately as they occur to reduce reliance on
memory
3 ways to conduct ABC observations:
i)
Descriptive method
o observer writes a brief description of the behavior & of each A+C event each time the behavior occurs
o open-ended question,(bc it is open-ended & results in descriptions of all events that were contagious to
the beh).
o Bc it is open-ended & the observer describes all antecedent & con events that were observed, this ABC
assessment method conducted BEFORE indirect methods are used, BEFORE hypothesis developed
o see fig 13.2 on p.248
ii) Checklist method: involves checklist with columns for possible A,B,Cs; developed AFTER problem
behaviors & potential A+C are identified in an indirect assessment method. Observer records particular
problem behavior each time it occurs (together w/ A & C) by putting a check mark in each relevant columns
o see p.249 for example
iii) Interval/real-time recording method
o interval recording, divide observation period into brief time intervals & mark a data sheet @ the end
of each interval to record if behavior occurred in interval; real-time recording, record the exact time
of each occurrence of the behavior
o e.g. non-compliance beh of a child
 They asked the parent to make a # of requests & then recorded the occurrence of child
noncompliance & parental attention after noncompliance using 10-s interval recording.
 Attention was reinforcing the noncompliance
 Successful treatment involved +ve reinforcement for compliance & a procedure called timeout, in w/c parental attention was eliminated after noncompliance.
 Indirect and direct functional assessment methods are categorized as descriptive assessment because
A +C are described from memory or from direct observation of the events
 Descriptive fn assessment allow you to develop hypotheses about the A and C variables controlling the
problem behavior BUT DO NOT prove variables are FUNCTIONALLY related to behavior(must
experiment)
3) Experimental methods(functional analysis)
 manipulate A or C variables to demonstrate their influence on the problem behavior; some manipulated
BOTH A & C to evaluate possible functions of problem behavior
 a.k.a experimental analysis or functional analysis
 In a fn analysis, you follow the prob beh w/ potential reinforcers to see w/c con ↑(strengthen) the beh,
and/or you present different antecedent events(possible Eos) to see w/c 1 evokes the beh
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Some researchers have manipulated both antecedents & con to evaluate the possible fns of a prob beh
Other researchers have conducted fn analyses in w/c antecedents were manipulated to determine their
influence on the prob beh
Exploratory functional analysis
o Funl analyses that are designed to evaluate a range of possible fns for the prob beh. In this case,
the beh analyst may not have a hypothesis about the reinforcing con maintaining the prob beh &
is exploring a range of possibilities in the fn analysis
o Typically includes 3/4 test conditions & a control condition
o Test condition=you present an EO & a possible reinforcer for the prob beh
o Control Condition=you present an AO & withhold the possible reinforcers.
o did NOT have clear hypothesis about the function of a problem behavior, conduct 4 different
conditions evaluating whether attention, tangible reinforcers, escape or sensory stimulation was
reinforcing consequence
o It can identify a particular fn of a problem beh while ruling out other fn
Hypothesis-testing functional analysis
o MAY involve FEWER experimental conditions because the behavior analyst bases conditions on
specific hypothesis and goal of functional analysis is NOT to evaluate all possible functions, but to
CONFIRM/DISCONFIRM hypothesis
o One cond(the test condition) presents the hypothesized EO, & when the prob beh occurs, presents
the hypothesized AO, & if the prob beh occurs , does not provide the hypothesized reinforcer.
o e.g. If you believed the target beh was reinforced by attention, you might evaluate 2 experimental
conditions in a fnal analysis:
i. a test condition involving no attention as an antecdednt condition(EO) w/ attention
contingent on the target beh
ii. a control condition involving high levels of attention as an antecedent condition(AO) w/
no attention after the tarhet beh
GENERAL E.G.
o The treatment Rich implemented was successful bc it was based on the results of the fn
assessment.
o When Rich understood why Jacob was engaging in the prob beh, he could develop an
appropriate treatment
V.
Functional Analysis Research
There is substantial research on the use of fn analysis to identify the variables controlling prob beh in
children & people w/ developmental disabilities.
Hypothesis: The antecedents to aggressive beh were academic demands, & that escape fr demands was
the reinforcer for the prob beh
o 2 experimental methods:
i.
Academic demands were presented to the 2 children
ii.
No demands were placed on he children
o Found that the aggressive beh occurred at a high rate when demands were made, but that the
prob beh decreased substantially when no demands were made on the children.
Another experiment w/ SIB
o If the rate of SIB was high in the alone condition, it would demonstrate that the SIB was
maintained by the sensory consequences produced by the beh
o Called this automatic reinforcement bc the beh produces a reinforcing consequence
automatically, w/o any response fr other people in the environment
o Iwata & colleagues demonstrated that the SIB of different children had different fns
 For some children, the SIB was reinforced by attention, for others by escape, & for some
by sensory stimulation(automatic reinforcement)
o Suggests that you must conduct a fnal assessment of prob beh to understand their fns & to chose
the most effective treatments
ADVANTAGE:
i.
A fn analysis demonstrates a fn relationship btw the controlling variables & the prob beh
DISADVANTAGE:
i.
Time, effort & expertise needed to manipulate the antecedents & con & measure the resulting
change in the beh
VI.
Conducting a Functional Assessment
 You should always conduct some form of fn assessment b4 you develop treatment for a prob beh
 To develop the most appropriate treatment, you should understand the environmental events(antecedents
& con) that control the beh
Conducting a functional assessment
1) starts with an interview with client/informants
2) Develop a hypothesis about the ABCs of the problem beh
o OUTCOME? CLEAR DEFINTION of problem behavior and development of hypotheses about
antecedents that evoke the problem behaviors and the reinforcing consequences that maintain them.
Interview may also yield valuable information on alternative behaviors, setting events or ecological
variables, other reinforcing stimuli and previous treatments
3) after developed hypothesis, conduct direct observations of the ABCs in NATURAL context by
professional, client or people in client’s environment
o IMPORTANT to REDUCE REACTIVITY
o if ABC observation consistent with info from interview, A & C strengthened
4) Confirm your initial hypothesis about the ABCs of the prob beh
o with firm hypothesis from multiple sources of assessment info (interview & direct observation), you
can develop functional assessments that address the antecedents & consequences identified in the fn
assessment.
5) Conduct further assessments if needed.
o if ABC observation NOT consistent with interview, another interview and further observations are
needed to clarify inconsistencies
o if further descriptive assessments produce consistent information that allows you to develop firm
hypotheses about the controlling antecedents & con, you can consider the functional assessment
complete & develop fn interventions.
6) Conduct a functional analysis if needed.
o if further descriptive assessments still inconsistent, functional analysis IS NECESSARY
o a functional analysis is also necessary if the information from descriptive assessments is consistent
but does not lead to a firm hypothesis
 good e.g. : worker w/ down syndrome
i. should reinforce by attention or escape?
*Essential features of a functional analysis: have reliable method of data to record behavior in experimental
conditions, manipulate antecedent or consequence while holding other variables constant and to repeat
experimental conditions using reversal design (or other experimental design) to demonstrate experimental
control over the behavior
VII. Functional Interventions
 Once you have conducted the fn assessment process, you use the info on antecedents & con of the prob
beh to develop interventions
 Interventions should be designed to alter the antecedents & con of the prob beh & ↑ desirable alternative
beh.
 Functional Interventions:
i. Extinction
ii. Differential reinforcement
iii. Antecedent manipulations
 They are considered fn bc they address the antecedents & con identified in the functional
assessment(they address the fn of the beh)