Understanding Challenging Behaviors

What causes a behavior may be different from one person to the next. One type of behavior may have a different function depending on with whom you are working. You are most likely to see behaviors when a person wants something or wants to avoid something.

Pulling hair, for example, could act as a different function depending on the person. One person may pull your hair because of anger directed towards you. Another person may pull your hair to get attention. There also could be another person who pulls your hair because of liking the way it looks or feels. Keeping this in mind, techniques for handling the behavior will be different from person to person.

The PCA should:

·        Know what may trigger behaviors.

·        Understand the causes of behaviors.

Never think you know the root behind the behavior because you have worked with similar behavior in the past. Always look for the meaning behind the behavior.

Think about the following questions. If you know the answer you may know how to respond to the behavior. If not, you may want to problem solve with your Qualified Professional (QP):

·        Are there medical reasons for the behavior?

·        Are there cultural aspects to the behavior?

·        Are there communication barriers that cause the behavior?

Case Study: Medical Reasons

Mike is a non-verbal individual who has a history of urinary tract infections. From time to time, he has difficulty communicating his wants and needs. His head-banging behavior is often triggered when he experiences discomfort from his infections.

When staff witness head-banging behaviors, they should consider that there might be a medical reason behind the behavior.

Case Study: Cultural Barriers

Susie grew up eating her mother's traditional Scandinavian food. She is not used to eating spicy cuisine and will shriek when she is served food that is too spicy for her.

When Susie begins shrieking, staff should consider that the food she is being served may be too spicy.

Case Study: Communication Barriers

Pat is an individual who stutters when speaking. When he is unable to get his words out, he gets upset and his stutter worsens. This only frustrates him more, and he begins to punch walls and other surfaces. When this behavior arises, staff should consider that he is having trouble communicating his wants and needs.

Use observation and redirection as ways to respond to the behavior. Look for common places, times or people that may trigger the behavior. An example might be that a person always starts crying whenever going to the grocery store. A response can be prepared, or a situation avoided if a pattern is recognized.

Another question to ask is what maintains the behavior? For example, if a person kicks someone to get attention and gets a reaction, the behavior will go on. The behavior may stop if there is no reaction to the behavior.

A PCA should also try and seek out alternatives for the behavior. Is there something you would offer to support a positive or reinforcing result? For example, complimenting the person when they stop the inappropriate behavior.

PCAs should also see if redirection is an option to challenging behaviors. For example, the person is always frustrated when asked about a brother. The PCA should change the topic or avoid the behavior.

Never make guesses about people and the behaviors shown. PCAs should look at the history of the behavior and see out the QP for training to work with the person. Each person is unique and acts in a unique manner when displaying behaviors. You can manage challenging behaviors if you learn about the person and react in the proper manner.