Functional Communication Training to Reduce Challenging Behavior: Maintenance and Application in New Settings

Abstract

We evaluated the initial effectiveness, maintenance, and transferability of the results of functional communication training as an intervention for the challenging behaviors exhibited by 3 students. Assessment indicated that escape from academic demands was involved in the maintenance of the challenging behaviors. Social attention was also implicated as controlling the behavior of 1 student. The intervention involved teaching alternative assistance-seeking and attention-getting phrases to the students in an effort to replace challenging behavior with these verbal equivalents. Multiple baseline data collected across the 3 students indicated that not only did the intervention substantially reduce challenging behavior but also that these results transferred across new tasks, environments, and teachers, and were generally maintained from 18 to 24 months following the introduction of functional communication training. These results are discussed in light of recent efforts to develop effective interventions for severe challenging behavior and to understand the processes underlying transfer and maintenance of intervention effects.

An Application of the Matching Law to Severe Problem Behavior

“…First, the procedures described in the current investigation are limited in that the reinforcers that maintained appropriate behavior (e.g., compliance, requests for attention) were not empirically determined. However, the functional equivalence of problem behavior and appropriate communicative behavior has been demonstrated repeatedly in the behavior-analytic literature (Durand & Carr, 1991Northup et al, 1991). We are currently evaluating procedures to identify reinforcers for appropriate communicative behavior when problem behavior is not amenable to standard functional analysis procedures.…”

Self-injurious behaviour in young children with Lesch-Nyhan syndrome

“…One such early intervention strategy could be to actively promote early communicative behaviours (e.g., signing or verbal mands) in the children's repertoires at a very early stage (Carr & Durand, 1985;Durand & Carr, 1991).…”

“…In recent years, a number of sophisticated improvements to both the behavioural analysis and treatment of self-injury in individuals with autism and/or developmental disabilities have occurred (Carr & Durand, 1985;Durand & Carr, 1991;Iwata et al, 1994;Murphy et al, 1993;Wacker et al, 1990). Studies have shown that SIB can be maintained by environmental consequences such as the contingent removal of demands, the contingent provision of attention and/or tangible items such as toys and by automatically produced sensory consequences (Carr, 1977).…”

Establishing Operations: Implications for the Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention of Problem Behavior

“…FCT has been shown to lead to rapid, durable, and generalized reductions in problem behavior without the occurrence of an extinction burst (Durand & Carr, 1991, 1992Sprague & Horner, 1992). The success of FCT has generally been attributed to the notion of functional equivalence (Carr & Durand, 1985a) in which the strengthening (through FCT) of a socially desirable response leads to the weakening or elimination of problem behavior responses having the same function.…”