Functional analysis and treatment of aberrant behavior

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Science
• Psychology
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Aberrant behavior can be influenced by various environmental factors.
• Previous research has identified numerous contributing environmental events.
• Understanding these variables is crucial for intervention development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review and discuss methodologies for analyzing variables that maintain aberrant behavior.
• To summarize classes of environmental variables contributing to maladaptive responding.
• To provide suggestions for comprehensive functional analysis.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on aberrant behavior analysis.
• Summarization of environmental variables linked to maladaptive responding.
• Discussion of descriptive and experimental functional analysis methods.

Main Results:

• Identification of various environmental events contributing to maladaptive behavior.
• Categorization of these environmental variables with examples.
• Emphasis on the utility of functional analysis in understanding behavior.

Conclusions:

• Functional analysis is key to understanding and intervening in aberrant behavior.
• Descriptive and experimental methods enhance analysis comprehensiveness.
• Interventions derived from analysis are more likely to be effective.