Presentation Script – Functions of Behavior and Importance of Function-Based Strategies

Presentation Script – Functions of Behavior and Importance of Function-Based Strategies

Hello, my name is Juliet Anozie. I am a Board Certified Behavior Analyst working with the newly established ABA company. Welcome to this presentation about the functions of behavior and the importance of function-based strategies for both our staff and clients.

Functions of Behavior

The function of behaviour refers to the reason individuals engage in specific behaviours. Under the paradigm of negative reinforcement, the function of a behavior is to avoid or escape an aversive stimulus (Killu, 2008). Kiilu (2008) adds that one of the functions or reasons why individuals engage in certain behaviours is to seek the attention of the people in their surroundings, such as caregivers, teachers, and peers. They can also acquire certain behavior to access tangible items or for automatic or sensory purposes, for instance, if it feels good.

The Importance of Behavior Functions

Identifying behaviour is important to successful behaviour intervention programs for both clients and staff. First, identifying functions helps develop an effective and targeted intervention plan because the analyst is well-informed. Moreover, it helps ensure that the strategy used is individualized to address the unique aspects that drive the behaviour. It also aids in the prevention of reinforcement of problematic behaviors. Once a function is recognized, it helps the analyst to prevent inadvertently reinforcing behavior that is undesired. Lastly, identifying function helps reduce the challenges that clients and staff may face while handling a certain behaviour. For instance, the staff would be psychologically prepared to address a certain behaviour and even have ideas for handling it. In the process, the client’s undesired behaviours may be prevented by simply handling the factors driving them.

Illustrating the Importance of Behavior Function

To showcase the importance of behavior function, let’s consider an example of a boy client who engages in aggressive outbursts, such as throwing things, spitting, biting, screaming, and rolling on the floor, to avoid or escape doing his homework so that he can watch his favorite TV show. Without identification of the function, the behavior analyst or expert may inadvertently reinforce this behavior by giving the client TV time when he engages in the identified aggressive behavior.

Illustrating the Importance of Behavior Function Continued

In a three-term contingency, a consequence is contingent on the behaviour occurrence when an antecedent stimulus is present (Miltenberger, 2015). The three-term contingency entails antecedent stimulus, behaviour, and consequence. In this case, the antecedent stimulus is the child being asked to complete his homework. The behaviour is his engagement in aggressive behaviour like spitting, rolling on the floor, or biting. The consequence is the child being given 10 minutes to watch his favourite TV show. With the knowledge of the function, a suitable intervention can be implemented to prompt the client to use a more appropriate behaviour to serve the function. For instance, the behaviour analyst can teach the child to properly request to watch the TV using kind language or plan a schedule for TV and homework time.

Target Behaviors

We can now discuss three target behaviours and how we can measure them. Our first target behaviour is finishing homework in good time. In this behaviour, we define the number of finished assignments within the stipulated timeframe as the operational definition. This can be measured by identifying the number of assignments finished within the stated period. The second target behaviour is using proper communication language with people. In this case, the operational definition is using polite and kind language when interacting with people. This can be measured by the time the client spends communicating politely with others. Our third target behaviour is attending classes every school day. Thus, in this case, the operational definition is participating in classes every school day. Accordingly, this can be measured by looking into whether the client has been present or absent during school days.

Consequence Strategies

Let us now discuss the consequence strategies related to the target behaviours. The first consequence strategy is positive reinforcement. This strategy entails acknowledging completed assignments and praising the client for finishing the assignments. The purpose of the strategy is to reinforce the prompt completion of assignments. The second consequence strategy is the token economy. The token economy entails earning tokens to attend every class. Its purpose is to encourage class attendance every school day. The last consequence strategy is time out from attention. Its purpose is to discourage the use of inappropriate language.

Supervisor Qualifications

The qualifications determined by BACB to supervise RBTs, BCaBAs, and supervised fieldwork include being a Board Certified Behavior Analyst as stipulated by BACB. The individual must also complete an 8-hour training on supervision by the BACB. Also, they must be knowledgeable and well-experienced in ABA and its applications. Furthermore, they must comply with the BACB supervisor training and requirements of continuing education and stay updated with the current ethical standard and guidelines by BACB. These qualifications play an important role in supporting and guiding our staff development.

Ethical Responsibilities to Supervisees and Trainees

There are important ethical codes that we must consider when implementing new policies and procedures for supervisees and trainees. As supervisors, we must take full responsibility for the actions of our trainees and supervisees because we are responsible for ensuring that they adhere to the stipulated codes in the BABC. We must also ensure that the trainees and the supervisees are competent enough to carry out their roles. This should take place before they are even recruited into the team. We can only do this after ensuring that we, as supervisors, are competent and experienced to provide effective supervision as stipulated in the ethics code of behavior analysts. As such, we must always conduct ourselves professionally so that the trainees and supervisees can also emulate. This means that we should inculcate a culture of professionalism in our supervisory work. Since we all know that the client is an important person in our work, adhering to the code of confidentiality should be our priority. Any further relationships, such as romantic ones, should be avoided because this can risk the professionalism of the entire organization as well as the loss of our licensure.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we have seen that the functions of behaviour include escape/avoidance, attention-seeking, access to tangible items, and automatic/sensory. We have also discussed the functions of behaviour. For instance, behaviour functions help develop effective and targeted behaviour intervention plans, and individualized strategies, prevent undesired or problematic behaviours or inadvertent behaviour, and minimize challenging behaviours that may surface later. They are also directed to meet the real needs of a client. This presentation has also covered the qualifications of supervisors. We have highlighted that they must be board-certified, have training and experience, and comply with BACB requirements. They must also be knowledgeable about ABA. Based on this knowledge, we found that some ethical considerations to consider while formulating policies and procedures include responsibility, professionalism, confidentiality, and competence.

That’s the end of my presentation; thank you!

References

BACB. (2022). Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts.

Killu, K. (2008). Developing effective Behavior Intervention Plans: Suggestions for School Personnel. Intervention in School & Clinic. 43(3), 140-149.

Miltenberger, R. G. (2015). Behavior Modification: Principles and Procedures (6th Edition). Cengage Limited.

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For this assignment, you are a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst working for a newly established ABA company. Your company would like to establish policies and procedures that are behavior-analytic in nature. They have asked you to give a presentation reviewing the functions of behavior and explaining the importance of function-based strategies for both clients and staff.

Assignment Directions

Using the Unit 6 Assignment Template, develop a professional PowerPoint presentation. Then, use Kaltura Capture to record a 5–10-minute video presentation that further supports the information on your slides as if you were presenting. To minimize reading off each slide, guidance has been provided as to what to address in the presentation. Please read the assignment requirements for details on the guidelines and expectations.

Please respond to the following:

Slide 1: Title Slide

Title of PowerPoint presentation, your name, course and section number, instructor name, and date.
Audio: Introduce yourself and the purpose of the presentation.
Slide 2: Functions of behavior

Briefly define the functions of behavior.
Audio: Briefly discuss each function of behavior in your own words.
Slide 3: The Importance of Behavior Function

Based on your readings, list reasons why identifying function is important.
Audio: Explain why identifying function is so important to successful behavior intervention programs for both clients and staff.
Slides 4: Illustrating the Importance of Behavior Function

Provide an example of a target behavior that is being inadvertently reinforced because the function of the behavior has not been identified.
State the target behavior, the operational definition, and the hypothesized function.
Audio: Illustrate the importance of identifying the function of a target behavior before implementing a behavior plan for staff.
Slides 5: Illustrating the Importance of Behavior Function Continued

Display the three-term contingency diagram with your example.
Audio: Use the three-term contingency to discuss the hypothesized function of the staff’s behavior in the provided example.
Slides 6: Target Behaviors

Write operational definitions for three target behaviors in the work environment. Include how these behaviors will be measured (frequency, duration, etc.).
Audio: Discuss these behaviors and how they would be documented.
Slide 7: Consequence Strategies

Write three consequence strategies related to the target behaviors.
Audio: Explain these consequence strategies to your colleagues.
Slides 8: Supervisor Qualifications

Include the qualifications determined by the BACB to supervise RBTs, BCaBAs, and supervised fieldwork.
Audio: Based on your readings, discuss what it means to be an effective supervisor.
Slide 9: Ethical Responsibilities to Supervisees and Trainees

List the ethics codes that must be considered when implementing new policies and procedures for supervisees and trainees.
Audio: Explain the ethical considerations in your own words.
Slide 10: Conclusion

Summarize the key points of your presentation.
Audio: Thank your audience and ask if there are any questions.
Slide 11: References

Include a minimum of two scholarly, academic sources listed in APA format.