Young Children With Challenging Behavior

Abstract

Using the five intervention elements described by Dunlap et al. (2006) as a guide, the authors of this article reviewed the functional behavioral assessment (FBA) and function-based intervention research of the past 17 years (1990-2007), focusing on a component analysis of FBA and function-based intervention procedures. Thirty-five studies were coded for FBA procedures, intervention procedures, routines and activities targeted for FBA or intervention maintenance, and generalization. Findings indicate that young children with challenging behavior have benefited from FBA and function-based interventions. However, despite identification of recommended FBA and function-based intervention practices (Dunlap et al., 2006), a variety of procedures were used, many lacking these important elements. More than half of the studies used analogue testing in a non-natural setting rather than testing the hypothesis in the natural environment. A limited number of studies included teachers and parents in the entire FBA and intervention process. Future directions are discussed.