A Practical Guide to Functional Assessment and Treatment for Severe Problem Behavior

Severe problem behavior, often exhibited by those diagnosed with intellectual and developmental disabilities, poses a unique threat to an individual’s quality of life. Behavioral intervention is one of the most successful methods of treating severe problem behavior. A Practical Guide to Functional Assessment and Treatment for Severe Problem Behavior is devoted solely outlining how to utilize functional assessment and function-based treatment for patients with severe problem behaviors. This book begins with defining problem behavior by contrasting functional and structural definitions, clearly reviewing the term “severe”. The second section, Functional Assessment of Problem Behavior, reviews three different assessments in detail, providing sample questionnaires, methods for interviewing and brief bonus videos. The third section, Function-Based Treatments, outlines three main treatment options: comprehensive and trauma-informed strategies and outline information on collecting, graphing, and analyzing treatment data. The final section, Promoting Sustainability and Compassionate Care will review strategies to implement these assessments and treatments in a culturally relevant and compassionate way. Details various examples of indirect assessments methods including interviews and questionnairesAddresses the integration and testing of hypotheses from Indirect and descriptive assessments into functional analysesReviews treatments based on a trauma-informed frameworkOutlines common ethical issues including strategies to use when function-based treatments do not work and management of restrictive practicesIncludes bonus brief vignettes to illustrate procedures and assessments