Functional Assessments (FBAs, FAs)

Autism Functional Behavior Assessment for Educators

The autism behavior therapists at BBH use functional assessment methods to help educators find a reason or function for the student’s challenging behavior. There are several common reasons such an individual will use certain behaviors:

• To escape or avoid something
• Gain attention
• Gain access to preferred activities or items
• Alter sensory stimulation, automatic reinforcement

The goal of the functional assessment is to:

• Identify and define challenging behaviors
• Identify the times, events, and situations that predict when a behavior will and will not occur
• Determine what results occur and how these results may be maintaining the problem behavior
• Identify appropriate alternative and adaptive behaviors
• Establish a hypothesis that will be used to create goals and develop a positive behavior plan