What Causes Negative Behaviors and What to do About Them

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What Causes Negative Behaviors and What to do
About Them

• by
• Mark L. Sundberg, Ph.D., BCBA
• and
• Cindy A. Sundberg
• (www.marksundberg.com)

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Common Negative Behaviors for Children with Autism

• Looking away, non-responding, non-compliance
• Self-stim (rocking, mouthing objects, etc.)
• Falling to the floor
• Running from adults
• Climbing on tables, counters, bookcases, etc.
• Screaming, yelling, loud noises, etc.

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Common Negative Behaviors for Children with Autism

• Crying
• Tantrums (combination of behaviors)
• Property destruction
• Hitting, pushing, biting, etc.
• Self-injurious behaviors

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Behavioral Psychology can be a powerful tool to
understand and change negative behaviors

• The three-term contingency (An ABC analysis)
• Antecedent Behavior
  Consequence
• Child doesnt want Runs from adults
  Delays going inside
• to come inside and gets chased

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What Causes Negative Behaviors?

• There are many possible causes of negative
  behaviors
• The first task is to identify what is causing the
  specific behavior
• Use the three-term contingency to identify the
  cause of a behavior
• Define the behavior (start small--1 or 2
  behaviors)
• Identify the antecedents (the events before the
  behavior)
• Identify the consequences (what happened after
  the behavior)
• Antecedent Behavior Consequence

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What Causes Negative Behaviors?

• Many negative behaviors are caused by inadvertent
  reinforcement
• Negative behaviors may get attention, reaction,
  reprimands, etc.
• Negative behaviors may get access to reinforcers
• Negative behavior may allow one to avoid
  undesirable activities

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What Causes Negative Behaviors?

• Negative behavior may allow one to escape
  undesirable activities
• Negative behavior may be fun (Self-stim,
  destruction, climbing)
• Positive behaviors dont have the same effect as
  above
• No alternative skills to achieve the same
  reinforcer (Expressive language)

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What is Reinforcement?

• Reinforcement is anything that increases a
  behavior
• Reinforcement can be getting good things (e.g.,
  attention, toys, food)
• Reprimands and negative attention can sometimes
  be reinforcers for kids
• Reinforcement can be getting rid of bad things
  (e.g., demands, bedtime, putting on shoes)

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What is Reinforcement?

• Reinforcement increases good and bad behavior
• Most reinforcement occurs naturally and unplanned
• Understanding how reinforcement works is
  essential to reducing negative behaviors

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• Both good and bad behaviors are strengthened by
  reinforcement

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How to Change Negative Behaviors

• First identify the cause and frequency of the
  behavior
• Reinforcers are your behavior change tools
  Identify and control them
• Three parts to the intervention
• Prevention (antecedent intervention)
• Teach and reinforce (positive) replacement
  behaviors
• Change the consequence after the problem behavior
  (reduce negative behavior)

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Minor Negative Behaviors

• Behavior Loud voice, knocking things off the
  table, taking others toys for attention,
  fidgeting, whining, mild pouting, sulking, etc.
• 1st step Identify the cause using an ABC
  analysis For example, seeking attention
• Intervention
• 2nd step Prevention Identify high probability
  settings and time of problem behaviors, and
  re-schedule competing activities (e.g., phone
  calls, bill paying), plan activities that will
  engage the child

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Minor Negative Behaviors

• 3rd step Teach positive behavior Reinforcement
  Deliver reinforcement for appropriate behavior,
  on a consistent basis (e.g., 10-30 times per
  hour)
• 4th step Reduce negative behavior Extinction
  Ignore minor negative behaviors. Choose your
  battles wisely.

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Attention Seeking Minor Negative Behaviors

• Other possible causes of minor negative behaviors
• Weak expressive language
• Provide mand training
• Manding is asking for reinforcers with words,
  signs, or PECS
• It is often very easy to teach a child to mand
  (see Sundberg Partington, 1998)

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Attention Seeking Minor Negative Behaviors

• Other possible causes of minor negative behaviors
• The curriculum is too hard, out of developmental
  sequence, or of little value to the child.
• Use an assessment tool to identify a
  developmentally appropriate language and social
  skills curriculum

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How to use Reinforcementto Reduce Negative
Behaviors

• Make sure you really have a reinforcer
• Deliver the reinforcer immediately after good
  behavior
• Set up lots of opportunities for good/correct
  behavior (Dont just wait for them)
• Use a variety of reinforcers
• Deliver some reinforcers free (pairing)

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How to use Reinforcementto Reduce Negative
Behaviors

• Smile, be sincere, laugh, goof around, have fun
  with your child
• Some kids will require lots of reinforcers per
  hour (30-50)
• Engagement usually is reinforcing!
• Lack of reinforcement for positive behavior may
  increase negative behavior

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Examples of Reinforcers that Many Children Like

• Social/physical reinforcers attention, smiles,
  hugs, praise, funny faces, high fives, tickling,
  rough housing, chasing clapping hands, praise, a
  good laugh together, thumbs up, pats on the back,
  etc.
• Activity reinforcers playing a game, going to
  the park, reading a book together, pushes on a
  swing, riding a bike, wagon rides, swimming,
  adventures, put up a tent in the yard, watching a
  DVD, helping cook, etc.
• Material reinforcers food, drink, toys, bubbles,
  balloons, crayons, musical toys, playdough, cars,
  sand play, etc.

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Ignoring Bad Behavior Extinction

• Be prepared for an extinction burst
• Eye contact is often attention (reinforcement)
• Dont show facial reactions
• Dont argue, scold or talk (attention)
• Dont show anger (attention)
• Act absorbed in some other activity, walk away
• Give your child attention shortly after the bad
  behavior stops

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More Serious Negative Behaviors

• Behavior Tantrum, hitting, throwing, scratching,
  falling to the floor, etc.
• 1st step identify the cause of the behavior for
  that child
• Some possible causes Adult demand (e.g., go to
  bed, eat at the table, academic work),
  remove/denial of reinforcers (turn off TV, come
  inside, cant have desired activity)
• OFTEN, THE CHILD HAS LEARNED THAT NEGATIVE
  BEHAVIOR WILL REMOVE OR DELAY A TEACHERS OR
  PARENTS DEMANDS

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More Serious Negative Behaviors

• 2nd step Prevention, expressive language
  training, and curriculum change
• 3rd step Intervention Teach positive behavior
• 4th step Intervention Weaken negative behavior

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More Serious Negative Behaviors

• 2nd step Prevention
• Identify high probability problem areas
• Initially avoid demands that compete with
  powerful motivators
• Verbally prepare the child if possible
• Use if-then contingency for more verbal
  children
• Take activities and reinforcers to Drs office,
  store, airplane or car trips, friends houses,
  etc.

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More Serious Negative Behaviors

• Ask for the same behavior under less high
  probability times, and reinforce
• Break demand into small steps and reinforce each
  step
• Make your expectations clear, and be consistent
• Reinforce approximations
• Establish time limits for reinforcers
• Use extra time as reinforcers for no tantrums

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More Serious Negative Behaviors

• Step 3 Teach the positive behaviors
• Obtain the most powerful reinforcers for that
  child
• Carefully control and deliver those reinforcers
  after positive behaviors
• However, periodically deliver free reinforcers
  (pairing)
• Create a hierarchy of demands beginning with the
  simplest tasks (clap hands might be an easy
  demand)
• Provide lots of opportunities for the child to
  comply and be successful

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More Serious Negative Behaviors

• Gradually increase the demand, always reinforce
• Work in short sets of demands throughout the day
• Work in all environments
• Transfer control to other adults (generalization)
• Gradually begin to include high problem area
  demands (e.g., giving up reinforcers)
• Occasionally give back the reinforcer when given
  up
• Always end the interaction on a positive note

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More Serious Behaviors andNoncompliance

• 4th step Weaken the negative behavior
• Extinction Do not remove the demand
• Follow through with the demand
• Be prepared for an extinction burst
• Make your expectations clear
• Caution Removing the demand will make the
  problem worse

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More Serious Negative Behaviors

• Make sure negative behavior DOES NOT get
  reinforced in any way
• Do not promise reinforcers for stopping
• Do not show reinforcers when engaging in negative
  behaviors
• Do not try and talk a child down
  (reinforcement)
• Be calm, firm and non-emotional. Do not get
  caught up in an argument or power struggle

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Be Organized and Plan Ahead to be More Effective

• Anticipate your childs needs before his bad
  behavior forces you to meet his needs
• Avoid situations that you think might make the
  child irritable (e.g., staying out past their
  bedtime, shopping for a long time)
• Start your program in an environment that you can
  control (not at church, in a store, etc.)
• Teach others who work with the child how to use
  these behavioral techniques

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Summary

• Most negative behavior is learned behavior
• Use the four steps to reduce a negative behavior
• 1st step Use the three-term contingency to
  identify what causes the behavior
• 2nd step Prevent behavior problems (Change the
  task or demand levels, increase prompts, increase
  reinforcers for approximations)
• 3rd step Actively teach positive behaviors and
  continue to build on them
• Identify a wide variety of reinforcers and
  frequently deliver them for good behavior

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Summary

• 4th step Change the existing consequences for
  negative behavior
• Negative behavior often gets reinforced more
  often than positive behavior
• Dont reinforce the problem behavior
• Ignore minor misbehavior
• Change is often gradual
• Learn as much as you can about Behavior Analysis,
  it is a powerful tool for improving the lives of
  children with autism and their families

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Thank You!

• For an electronic version of this presentation
  visit
• www.marksundberg.com