Republication of “Functional Analysis of Classroom Variables for Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders”

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 322-336 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glen Dunlap ◽  
Lee Kern ◽  
Maria dePerczel ◽  
Shelley Clarke ◽  
Diane Wilson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Analysis ◽  
Behavioral Disorders ◽  
Functional Assessment ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Behavioral Support ◽  
Target Behaviors ◽  
Classroom Activities ◽  
School Programs ◽  
Functional Analyses ◽  
Improved Methods

Functional assessment and functional analysis are processes that have been applied successfully in work with people who have developmental disabilities, but they have been used rarely with students who experience emotional or behavioral disorders. In the present study, five students in elementary school programs for severe emotional disturbance participated in a comprehensive functional assessment process designed to yield a useful understanding of their desirable and undesirable behaviors. Interviews, record reviews, and direct classroom observations led to the development of individualized hypotheses regarding relationships between classroom events and the occurrence of target behaviors. Subsequently, direct manipulations (i.e., functional analyses) were conducted to test each of the hypotheses in the context of regularly-occurring classroom activities. These analyses demonstrate important influences that certain classroom variables can exert over individual student’s behavior. The process and results are discussed with regard to the need for improved methods for understanding student responding, and the benefits that functional assessment can offer programs of educational and behavioral support.

Functional Analysis of Classroom Variables for Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

1993 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 275-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glen Dunlap ◽  
Lee Kern ◽  
Maria Deperczel ◽  
Shelley Clarke ◽  
Diane Wilson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Analysis ◽  
Behavioral Disorders ◽  
Functional Assessment ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Behavioral Support ◽  
Target Behaviors ◽  
Classroom Activities ◽  
School Programs ◽  
Functional Analyses ◽  
Improved Methods

Functional assessment and functional analysis are processes that have been applied successfully in work with people who have developmental disabilities, but they have been used rarely with students who experience emotional or behavioral disorders. In the present study, five students in elementary school programs for severe emotional disturbance participated in a comprehensive functional assessment process designed to yield a useful understanding of their desirable and undesirable behaviors. Interviews, record reviews, and direct classroom observations led to the development of individualized hypotheses regarding relationships between classroom events and the occurrence of target behaviors. Subsequently, direct manipulations (i.e., functional analyses) were conducted to test each of the hypotheses in the context of regularly-occurring classroom activities. These analyses demonstrate important influences that certain classroom variables can exert over individual student's behavior. The process and results are discussed with regard to the need for improved methods for understanding student responding, and the benefits that functional assessment can offer programs of educational and behavioral support.

Perspectives on Functional (Behavioral) Assessment

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 316-321 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glen Dunlap ◽  
Lee Kern
Keyword(s):  
Functional Analysis ◽  
Behavioral Disorders ◽  
Functional Assessment ◽  
Original Work ◽  
Behavioral Assessment ◽  
Functional Behavioral Assessment ◽  
Tremendous Amount

In the 25 years since the publication of the article reprinted in this issue of Behavioral Disorders, a tremendous amount of research and opinion has been published on the topics of functional analysis, functional assessment, and assessment-based interventions. In this commentary, we reflect on the context in which our original work was conducted and briefly consider changes that have occurred and challenges that remain.

scholarly journals Concurrent Validity of Functional Analysis, ABC Narrative Recordings, and Open-Ended Functional Assessment Interviews

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Komlantse M. Gossou ◽  
Marc Lanovaz ◽  
Antonia Giannakakos
Keyword(s):  
Functional Analysis ◽  
Functional Assessment ◽  
Challenging Behavior ◽  
Concurrent Validity ◽  
Empirical Support ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Assessment Interview ◽  
Functional Analyses ◽  
Independent Behavior ◽  
Better Than

ABC narrative recordings and Open-Ended Functional Assessment Interviews have limited empirical support for their concurrent validity with functional analysis. To address this issue, we conducted a study wherein 187 independent behavior analysts relied on data collected using ABC recordings and Open-Ended Functional Assessment Interviews to identify the function of challenging behavior in four children with autism. Then, we compared the results of their analyses with those of a traditional functional analysis. The analyses of the ABC recordings and of the Open-End Functional Assessment Interviews matched those of the functional analyses in 47% and 71% of cases, respectively. These findings suggest that the Open-Ended Functional Assessment Interview may perform better than the ABC narrative recording to develop hypotheses on the functions of challenging behavior.

Functional Assessment in Forensic Settings: A Valuable Tool for Preventing and Treating Egregious Behavior

2010 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 81-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
André Ivanoff ◽  
Henry Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Functional Assessment ◽  
Clinical Case ◽  
Forensic Assessment ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Case Conceptualization ◽  
Mentally Disordered ◽  
Scarce Resources ◽  
Target Behaviors ◽  
Chain Analysis ◽  
Controlling Variables

Forensic agencies and institutions are charged with treating the most socially disruptive and mentally disordered individuals while securing public safety. Egregious behaviors in these settings demand immediate response and scarce resources. Functional assessment, sometimes used synonymously with functional or behavioral analysis, is presented as a cornerstone tool to help identify targets for intervention and hypothesize causal behavioral connections. Using an interactive chain analysis approach, the temporal sequence of behavior is examined across domains with an emphasis on obtaining operational knowledge about the functions and controlling variables of target behaviors. A clinical case example is used to illustrate the potential contribution of FA in forensic assessment and case conceptualization.

A Critical Analysis of Functional Assessment: Issues for Researchers and Practitioners

1996 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert A. Gable
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Disorders ◽  
Functional Assessment ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Analytical Approach ◽  
Treatment Decisions ◽  
Emotional Behavioral Disorders ◽  
Target Behavior ◽  
Behavior Strategies ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Direct Measures

This article addresses the use of an analytical approach to making treatment decisions known as functional assessment. The usefulness of functional assessment with students with emotional/behavioral disorders is predicated on the assumption that the effectiveness of treatment increases if it matches the function of the target behavior(s). Discussion covers both indirect and direct measures of the relationship between the target behavior and variables that may be maintaining the behavior. Strategies for selecting and verifying hypothesis-driven treatment decisions are presented. In that the accumulated research has failed to dislodge some stumbling blocks to the use of functional assessment, several methodological solutions are offered for researchers and practitioners.

scholarly journals Offender Risk and Needs Assessment: Some Current Issues and Suggestions

2001 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mitchell K. Byrne ◽  
Stuart Byrne ◽  
Katherine Hillman ◽  
Emma Stanley
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Functional Analysis ◽  
Needs Assessment ◽  
Forensic Psychology ◽  
Financial Resources ◽  
Accurate Identification ◽  
The Public ◽  
Multiple Levels ◽  
Functional Analyses

AbstractCrime impacts upon the community at multiple levels, causing distress and loss for the victims, and feelings of insecurity for the public, as well as adding to the drain on financial resources for governments. This makes the accurate identification of risk of reoffending and the determination of efficacious rehabilitation strategies imperative. Key principles in cognitive and behavioural psychology can contribute to this task. This paper will review the issue of risk assessment and describe the applicability of functional analysis to forensic psychology. Two studies by the authors will be used to illustrate concepts raised in this review. The paper will conclude with a model that may help guide the realistic implementation of detailed individual functional analyses of offenders' behaviour.

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