Building Functional Curricula for Students With Severe Intellectual Disabilities and Severe Problem Behaviors

Abstract

People with severe intellectual disabilities who engage in dangerous behaviors present a major challenge. When building support plans (e.g., IEPs, IHPs) for these individuals, the severity of their harmful behaviors often overshadows all other support objectives. Recently, however, leaders in the field have encouraged a reevaluation of our strategies for delivering support (Touchette, 1989a; Wacker, 1989). We are encouraged to use functional analysis assessment procedures more prescriptively (Carr, Taylor, Carlson, & Robinson, 1989; Donnellan, LaVigna, Negri-Shoultz, & Fassbender, 1989; Durand & Crimmins, 1987; Favell, 1990; Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, & Richman, 1982; Mace et al., 1988; Meyer & Evans, 1989; Van Houten et al., 1988; Wacker et al., 1990) and to apply our technology of instruction in an effort to teach appropriate behaviors that achieve the behavioral function of the dangerous behaviors (Bailey & Pyles, 1989; Carr, 1988; Carr, Robinson, & Palumbo, 1990; Durand, 1990; Horner & Billingsley, 1988). This effort reflects a return to the roots of applied behavior analysis (Baer, Wolf, & Risley, 1968, 1987) and emphasizes that the content of instruction is an important concern for the reduction of problem behaviors. We are moving into an era in which durable, generalized behavior change is the standard for success, and where instructional technology will be viewed as among the most powerful approaches for reducing severe problem behavior.