Challenging Behaviors
Popular Questions
Here are tips for reducing and preventing challenging behaviors:
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Make sure the individual or others are not in danger and are safe: If the individual is behaving in a way that may injure them or others, remove them from the situation or take steps to stop them.
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Change the setting or location: If the individual’s behavior occurs only in certain situations, specific places, or only around certain people, you may be able to stop the behavior by changing their environment.
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Create a distraction: An individual can often be distracted into stopping an undesirable behavior.
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Tell the individual in advance what is happening: Prepare them if a change is going to occur, or let them know what is going to take place before it happens. Most people like routines and predictability. Changes in a normal day’s routine could upset an individual and trigger negative behaviors. Prepare them for any changes to their daily routine.
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Respond calmly, speak briefly: It is hard to listen to an individual when they are upset, talking in a loud voice, or is talking so much that you cannot really hear what the individual is trying to say. Don’t try to talk about why something is right or wrong while both of you are still upset. Wait until a things are calm and then ask about how things could have been handled better.
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Teach alternative behaviors: Teach the individual what you want them to DO instead of what not to do.
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Offer choices: Give the individual choices to help build independence while also giving him some control over their environment.
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Notice the positive: Catch the individual doing “good.” If you reinforce positive behaviors, they will continue. Praise the individual when positive behavior occurs.
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Be consistent: Establish regular routines for the individual and stick with them.
De-escalation: When it comes to the de-escalation of a volatile situation, the primary goal is to avert physical aggression and diff use angry outbursts. The situation can then be processed at a later time with the individual.
- Remain calm and use a quiet, even tone of voice.
- When being yelled at, our automatic defense response is to raise our voices right back. However, reacting in this way can further agitate the individual. Use a quiet voice and a calming tone.
- Listen to what the individual is saying.
- Often individuals will calm down once they verbalize what is upsetting them. Interrupting them or shutting them down may have the effect of increasing the individual’s anger or frustration.
- Validate the individual’s feelings.
- Offer choices and clear consequences.
Here are some tips for managing challenging behaviros:
- Building relationships with even the individual and practicing interventions to de-escalate problem situations when they arise. Find out what triggers in the environment might provoke or try to understand the triggers for challenging behavior. It will be useful to figure out what triggers the challenging behavior, and what they think they will gain by behaving in that way. Make sure you are supporting the individual with the right level of support. Make sure you allow the individual to make decisions, and have choices. Be consistent.
- Individuals with complex needs often have trouble communicating pains and other physical problems that they may have, so these may result is extreme emotions or bad behavior.
- See if the behavior is being triggered by something you cannot see. Ask yourself could it be headaches, toothaches, or even side-effects from medicines and is triggering the challenging behavior.
- When an individual is acting up or misbehaving in some way, our first reaction may be to tell them to stop doing what they are doing (e.g. ‘stop kicking’ or ‘stop hitting’). It can be much more helpful to say what positive behavior you would like to see. (e.g. ‘let’s sit down and talk about what you want to do’ or ‘lets’ go for a walk’) Respect the individual. Make sure they feel respected and safe.
- If you can spot early warning signs or triggers that an individual is going to have an emotional outburst or begin another form of challenging behavior, you can intervene in a positive way, and try to change the behavior by distracting the individual with other strategies or interventions.
- Be aware and help when the individual is in distress. Work with the individual’s coping strategies for dealing with problems.
- Challenging behavior can be a result of attention seeking so separating yourself from the individual until they settle down can be very helpful. That way, you are not rewarding challenging behavior with attention, and so encouraging more of it.
There are many possible reasons or a combination of reasons for challenging behavior:
- Some individuals may bite or hit out of frustration, others become stubborn and do not follow instruction because they’re trying to be independent. However, some challenging behaviors could have a physical cause.
- Several medical issues can present with challenging behavior.
- Stereotyped behavior, such as rocking or pacing, may be the way a person maintains the level of stimulation or arousal they want.
- Challenging behavior may be a way to communicate the need for food, drink or comfort.
- Challenging behavior can be a sign of abuse, distress, anger, frustration, discomfort or pain.
- Environment can play a part in challenging behaviors. This could include under/over stimulation, poor physical environment such as extremes in temperature or noise levels or inconsistencies in caregiving, awareness, approach and training.
- Sometimes challenging behavior can be a sign of a wider problem with someone’s mental health.
- Challenging behavior may be more likely if a person is disabled.
- A mix of impairments, environment and interpersonal relationships make it more likely that a disabled person may develop a behavior, possibly challenging, to meet their needs. Remember, each behavior has a function for the person displaying it.
Most challenging behaviors are not premeditated and are not designed to upset others.
When confronted by some form of challenge, it’s always worth stepping back and asking yourself as a caregiver:
- Why does this person need to go to all the effort of showing this behavior?
- What’s going on from their point of view that makes them need to do this?
Challenging behaviors are difficult behaviors that do not go away over time or after using the usual discipline methods. It is the impact of these behaviors that makes them challenging to family members and care providers.
Challenging behavior can also be thought of as a means in which an individual with a learning disability can control his or her's environment.
Challenging behavior can also show that there is some unfulfilled need or a problem with communication. These unmet needs may include the need to belong, the need for feeling of appreciation; the need for attention, or the need for entertainment or pleasure.
Remember, all behavior is functional. There is a reason for the individual's behavior.
You can consult your child's school or your family's doctor for referrals to therapists or counselors that specialize in your family's need.
The Nebraska Resource and Referral System is a online searchable database where you can find therapists and counselors in your area.
The Boys Town National Hotline’s specially trained counselors are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to offer parenting advice and assistance. These dedicated professionals receive ongoing training on how to deal with situations ranging from suicide to challenges parents encounter every day with their teens. For help with parenting questions call the Boys Town National Hotline at 1-800-448-3000, or ask the Parenting Experts at Boys Town a question online.