Disclaimer: Conducting an FBA is a very individualized process that must consider the instructional setting, the learner's environment, and who will carry out the intervention. The following post
contains suggestions to guide the process, and is not intended to be applicable
for every learner or every situation. Its also important to note that the usefulness of an FBA extends beyond individuals
with Autism.
For my original post explaining how to conduct a FBA, click
here: http://www.iloveaba.com/2012/02/everyday-fba.html
Photo source: easypeasykids.com.au
This post is for caregivers (parents, teachers, therapists,
etc.) who have conducted a FBA to determine the function of a challenging
behavior and it is: Positive Reinforcement or Attention.
Attention seeking behaviors can be tricky to intervene on, because
most attention seeking behaviors really GRAB people’s attention….that’s kind of the point. :-)
If a child bites your arm, throws a plate of food at you, or yells out curse words in the classroom, you will probably have a reaction to those things. However, your reaction is exactly what the child wants. The good news is you don’t have to ignore these behaviors forever, which is impossible anyway. What you need to do is show the child an easier, more appropriate way to gain the attention they want.
If a child bites your arm, throws a plate of food at you, or yells out curse words in the classroom, you will probably have a reaction to those things. However, your reaction is exactly what the child wants. The good news is you don’t have to ignore these behaviors forever, which is impossible anyway. What you need to do is show the child an easier, more appropriate way to gain the attention they want.
If I want some cake,
I can choose to bake the cake myself or I can just
buy a pre-made cake from the store. Either way, I’m still
getting what I want. Think of behavior like that; the goal is to teach the
child an alternative way to get what they want. It takes much more effort
for a child to throw themselves on the floor and tantrum to get Mom’s
attention, than it does to hand her a card that says “Play”.
What do attention
seeking behaviors look like?
Attention seeking behaviors are going to produce the desired
goal of attention. This could be “good” or “bad” attention (I don't use these terms myself, but many do). The student in
class who yells out curse words to make his peers laugh is getting “good”
attention. After the other kids laugh the teacher may deliver a reprimand and
scold the student, which is “bad” attention. However, both sources of attention
are feeding the problem behavior. To an attention seeking kid, he/she doesn’t
care if you are praising them or scolding them: attention is attention.
Common attention seeking behaviors include: cursing/potty mouth, talking out in the
classroom, crying/whining, lying, off task behaviors, shouting/talking loudly, bothers
peers in the classroom, screaming, insults people, out of seat behavior in the
classroom, kicks the back of your seat in the car, hits/swats at peers, spits,
throws objects, and breaks toys.
Why do children
engage in attention seeking behaviors?
Attention seeking behaviors serve unmet needs, and may occur or increase if the child is unattended, unsupervised, or see others getting
attention and they are not. Typically these children either don’t know how to
appropriately gain attention, or when they use appropriate methods of gaining
attention it isn’t rewarded. You may be thinking “Why wouldn’t someone reward
the child if he/she is appropriately trying to gain attention?” That issue is
much more common than many people realize. Think about a 4 year old who is grocery shopping with her Dad. She is being quiet, appropriate, and
keeping her hands to herself, which her Dad is grateful for so he can focus on
shopping. After several minutes in the store, the child begins to
make noises and knock things off shelves. Her father scolds her, and gives her
a short lecture in the middle of the aisle. Do you see what happened right
there? The daughter received no attention for appropriate behavior, and TONS of
attention for inappropriate behavior.
How do I handle
attention seeking behaviors?
Once you determine the function of a behavior, you need to
do 2 things in order to reduce the behavior: stop reinforcing (feeding) the
inappropriate behavior, and teach the child what to do instead. If you have
other children, or if the setting is a classroom, then it’s important to
consider peer attention as well. If you are ignoring your son spitting out food
at the dinner table, but your other 3 children laugh and stare, then the
behavior is still being reinforced. Smiles, eye contact, and facial expression
are all powerful forms of attention. You may need to specifically teach the
other children how to react when the inappropriate behavior occurs.
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