When Behavior is challenging

Positive Behavior Supports is a strategy based on behavioral principles. It is distinct from, and stems from ABA, Applied Behavior Analysis. Positive behavior supports involves changing the environment, not the person served. The goal is to make functional behavior more prevalent. People sometimes think that providers try to make a person appear more "normal."  Instead, functional behavior is any behavior that will "function" to work best for a person to get what they desire or value. The most functional behavior is identified by the team, including the individual served and their family, and other support people, to be most likely to help a person access what they need or desire. It is highly individualized to each person and performed in a way that works for that person.

Team members, including the person served, work with their provider to determine which goals are most important, and which strategies will be used to achieve those goals. Plans change as the team decides they should, as do strategies used to meet goals. Skilled BCBAs regularly check in with team members and monitor progress so the team can update its plans to ensure progress team members value as efficiently as possible. 

If you think of it, each of us chooses the behavior that helps us get what we need and want. We are free to behave as we choose, but we may find some behavior just does not get much of what we are looking for. It's the same for all of us. It is  true that, at times, people around a person with a disability should and must alter their typical expectations or strategies. Because unfamiliar people appear in our lives, they will be unaware of that need and not likely to perform such supportive behavior. The best way for any person to gain what they need is to have a way that works more often than not.