Module 6: Lesson 4

As you know, all behaviour happens for a reason. That is to say, that there are setting events, antecedents and consequences that influence our behaviour. 

When we talk about the function of behaviour, we are talking about the reason why the behaviour is occurring.

Traditionally, when people have tried to address behaviors that challenge, they have looked at its form (i.e. what it looks like), but in behaviour analysis we are interested in its function.

The reinforcing consequences for a challenging behaviour can be divided into four categories:

  • Sensory ? meaning that the sensory consequence of a behaviour reinforces and maintains it
  • Escape ? meaning  that the behaviour results in the termination or avoidance of something aversive
  • Attention ? meaning that the behaviour results in some sort of change in the social environment
  • Tangible ? meaning that behaviour results in access to some form of physical reinforcer

This four categories are broad. So let?s look at them in greater detail.

Sensory

A behaviour maintained by sensory reinforcement results in something that feels good. A hug is a sensory reinforcer for most people in many circumstances. Likewise, preferred smells or music are often sensory reinforcers.  The previous examples involved adding something to the environment. Therefore, they are examples of positive sensory reinforcement. However, actions such scratching an itch might also be considered a form of negative sensory reinforcement.

Escape

An escape maintained behaviour is one that results in stopping or avoiding something a person finds aversive.  Escape maintained behaviors tend to happen when somebody finds themselves in a situation they find difficult or embarrassing.

For example, a person on a building site might put on ear defenders if a co-worker was using loud equipment.    If a person was invited to a party, but found out that somebody they disliked was attending, they might make excuses so that they did not have to go.  If a teacher was asking children in a classroom Maths questions, a child who was afraid of getting their question wrong, might ask to go to the toilet to avoid being asked a question.


Attention

An attention maintained behaviour is one that results in some form of social interaction. Attention can take many forms including praise, laughter, reassurance, reprimands, eye-contact or physical interaction.  What is common to these forms of behaviour is that they all involve the reactions of other people (social reinforcement).
For example, a child might start screaming or pulling a parent?s trousers while they are on the phone to get attention. Someone might tell a colleague that they?re feeling said to access reassuring statements. A child might run away from a teacher, then stop and look to make sure the person is chasing after them. 

Tangible

A behaviour maintained by access to tangibles typically results in somebody accessing some item they like. For example, a chid might run away from their caregiver to access a videogame. A person might complete a survey to get a voucher. A mugger might threaten to harm their victim, to get their wallet.

It is important to understand that we adopt these categories for pragmatic reasons. A behaviour might be maintained by multiple types of reinforcement. For example, the child running away from their carer might find their carer?s reaction funny (attention) and to escape a difficult task (escape).  Also, some reinforcers fall into more than one category. For example, a hug results in both attention and sensory reinforcement.

It is also important to note that just because two forms of reinforcement belong to the same category, does not mean that they are interchangeable for the client.  For example, somebody whose challenging behaviour is maintained by attention in the form of reassurance, would not find a reprimand reinforcing just because they are both forms of attention.

Alternative Classification Systems

There are also alternative ways of classifying functions of behaviour.

FunctionalAlternative Labels
SensoryAutomatic positive reinforcement
 Automatic negative reinforcement
EscapeSocial negative reinforcement
AttentionSocial positive reinforcement
TangibleTangible positive reinforcement


For example, we could describe a challenging behaviour that is behaviours maintained as a result of their effectiveness in terminating or postponing aversive events as escape or negative social reinforcement.

We could describe challenging behaviour that typically results in immediate attention from others as attention maintained or as maintained by positive social reinforcement. A behaviour maintained by sensory consequences, such as body rocking, might also be described as being maintained by automatic positive reinforcement as the reinforcer is added to the person?s environment automatically. While a behaviour such as scratching an itch could be described as maintained by sensory reinforcement or as a result of automatic negative reinforcement as it removes the negative sensation.

In some cases, behaviour analysts seek will add a separate category for behaviors that are maintained by sensory/automatic reinforcement, but where the challenging behaviour is related to a medical issue (e.g. self-injury as a response to a cluster-headache.

As an RBT, it is important to understand that these classifications are not absolute. The classification system that your supervisor uses to describe the function of a behaviour will depend on the circumstances of your client.

Summary

When we complete a functional assessment, we seek to identify the functions of a behaviour. We then seek to identify ways in which the person can access the same or similar forms of reinforcement without having to engage in behaviors that challenge. In future lessons, we?ll look in more detail about how this can be achieved.

Shopping Basket
Scroll to Top