Effectiveness of challenging behavior IHP objectives in residential settings: a longitudinal study

Effectiveness of challenging behavior Individualized Habilitation Plan (IHP) objectives in residential settings was examined. We evaluated three indicators of successful intervention: discontinuation of challenging behavior IHP objectives, change in challenging behavior over time, and frequency of one-to-one crisis intervention and found little evidence of effective intervention. Less than a fourth of participants had a challenging behavior objective discontinued within a year. There was no significant change in challenging behavior from one annual assessment to the next, although the decrease in asocial challenging behavior approached significance. Frequency of crisis intervention also did not change significantly over time. These findings suggest that most challenging behavior IHP objectives are ineffective in reducing challenging behavior.