Running head: BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS 1

Behavior Analysis

Name:

University:

Professor:

Course:

Date:
BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS 2

Introduction

Tommy is ten years of age and has formed the habit of enjoying swimming, baking, and

baseball. On the contrary, he dislikes large crowds and art activities. Even though Tommy has a

good sense of humor, he can choose to be irritable. When he is around new people, he remains

quiet since he fears them. His teachers and parents have noticed that he is highly verbal and talks

in sentences. When it comes to reading, Tommy is an above-grade-level student. He has been

diagnosed with a childhood-onset bipolar disorder and educational classification of severe

emotional and behavioral disorder. Since his diagnosis of bipolar, he has been taking his

medications daily to help manage the issue. In the past few months, Tommy has changed and

become increasingly disruptive. He has shown verbal outbursts and has been identified to push

the classroom material provided to him to the ground when he is having his quiet time. Tommy

has proved to be difficult to work with since his teachers spend more than an hour handling his

behavior daily. Tommy is in grade five and is new to the school. The teachers have severally

complained about his behavior of distracting the other students during the class time due to his

verbal outburst. This, therefore, means that his behavior not only interferes with his learning but

also the learning of the other students he is sharing a class with. The target behaviors that need to

be selected for change are verbal outbursts and throwing materials around during the class time.

These target behaviors are measurable. The measuring of behaviors is an important aspect that

practitioners utilize to evaluate whether the treatment being provided is effective or not.

Behavior intervention is the method that can be used to help Tommy in overcoming the stated

obstacles.
BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS 3

Section 1. Targeted Behavior: Physical Disruption

After going through the Functional Behavior Assessment, the following results were

obtained for Tommy for physical disruption. The frequency of physical disruptions involving

throwing books and other educational materials to the floor reduced with the introduction of the

intervention. Within the first two weeks, the physical disruptions reduced from around 2 to 5

times a week to around 1 to 3 times. By the end of the fourth week, the frequency of the physical

disruption had reduced to around 0 to 1 occasion per week. The physical disruption within the

first two weeks was longer than the disruption within the last two weeks. Within the first two

weeks, the disruptions lasted for around 20 to 30 seconds, while in the last two weeks, nearing

the fourth week, the disruption did not last longer than 10 seconds. This proved that the

intervention was helpful and helped solve the issues Tommy was experiencing. The targeted

behavior and physical disruption declined with time. The results are presented in the table and

graph below.

FREQUENCY PHYSICAL DISRUPTION VERBAL AGGRESSION

0 0 0
0.5 0 0
1 2 4
1.5 0 0
2 3 4
2.5 0 0
3 2 4
3.5 0 0
4 1 2
4.5 0 0
BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS 4

The behavioral strategy that the teacher will use to create the behavior implementation

checklist is the ABC strategy. The first step would be setting two chairs facing each other on

either side of a table, one for the instructor and the other for the student. As the first component

of a discrete trial, the antecedent sets the scene for the subsequent response. Neutral, The act of

withdrawing out of the kid's area of movement in order to prevent the youngster from coming

into touch with the adult's body is known as diversion. When it is hard for the adult to separate

themselves from the kid physically, they may be forced to use their own hands or arms to protect

the infant's sensitive regions of their body. The grownup will steer the kid to a job that is

appropriate for him once the adult has avoided harm and the kid has quit aggressing. The

grownup ought to refrain from reacting to the youngster with an alteration in facial expression or

a significant shift in body position. A parent or guardian must be prepared if they are aware of

circumstances in which the kid is still most likely to attack or otherwise harm them. Establishing

a safe environment to educate is essential; alternatives include being within arm's reach,
BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS 5

maintaining him sitting at a table for training, instructing from around the table outside his stride

length, and instructing from a standing posture while the kid remains seated. Effective recording

and collection of the behavioral strategy implementation will be carried out using the ABC data

collection sheet (Alvarez et al.,2017). The data ought to be collected every day by every

member. At the end of the data, the data must be graphed accordingly.

Section 2. Targeted Behavior: Verbal Aggression

After going through the Functional Behavior Assessment, the following findings were

obtained for Tommy for verbal aggressiveness. The incidence of speech, including verbal

outbursts to anybody, including the instructors and other pupils, declined with the start of the

intervention. Within the first two weeks, the verbal aggressiveness fell from roughly 2 to 5 times

a week to around 1 to 2 times. By the conclusion of the fourth week, the frequency of the verbal

aggressiveness had diminished to roughly 0 to 1 occurrence each week. During the first two

weeks, the verbal aggressiveness was lengthier than the disturbance inside the last two weeks.

Within the first two weeks, the verbal aggressions lasted for roughly 20 to 30 seconds, but in the

final two weeks towards the fourth week, the verbal aggressions did not continue for more than

10 seconds. This indicated that the intervention was successful and that it aided in fixing the

challenges Tommy was having. The targeted conduct and verbal aggressiveness diminished over

time. The findings are provided in the table and graph below.

FREQUENCY PHYSICAL DISRUPTION VERBAL AGGRESSION

0 0 0
0.5 0 0
1 2 4
1.5 0 0
2 3 4
2.5 0 0
3 2 4
BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS 6

3.5 0 0
4 1 2
4.5 0 0

The ABC approach is the behavioral strategy that the instructor will use to prepare the

behavior implementation checklist for the students. Setting up two seats facing each other on

each side of a table, one for the instructor and the other for the learner, would be a good starting

point for the process. As the initial component of a discrete trial, the antecedent establishes the

context for the answer to come later on. An adult will recommend a suitable job for the child

after the adult has avoided verbal hostility and after the child has stopped acting aggressively.

The adult should abstain from responding to the child by altering their facial expression or

changing their body posture significantly. If a parent or guardian is aware of conditions in which

the child is still most likely to be verbally aggressive, they must be prepared to respond

appropriately. It is critical to provide a safe atmosphere to teach; different methods include

BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS 7

keeping the child seated at a table for training, educating from around the tableside, and

instructing from a standing position while the child stays seated. The ABC data collection sheet

will ensure that the behavioral strategy implementation is recorded and collected efficiently and

effectively. Every member should be responsible for collecting data daily (Armstrong et

al.,2014). The data must be graphed appropriately toward the conclusion of the data.

Conclusion

From the graph, one can identify and note a clear connection between the intervention

measures introduced in class for Tommy and the reduction in his behaviors. This means that

Tommy's intervention received targeting behavior was effective and thus reduced the targeted

behavior. The main reason the intervention was effective was that the teachers and the

stakeholders in Tommy's life identified the causes of the problem, and therefore they understood

what they were handling and the most effective ways of handling the issue. After an effective

analysis of the behavior, the instructor identified that this behavior was caused by a bipolar

disorder that was diagnosed in Tommy's childhood. The effectiveness of using the selected

strategies and conducting a single-case design study with Tommy is that they help in reducing

the impacts of the targeted behaviors. The goals for addressing Tommy's issue are to continue

utilizing the selected strategies and to modify his environment as much as possible by frequently

changing his learning endorsements.

BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS 8

References

Alvarez, M., Zammitt, K., Strunk, L., & Filter, K. (2017). Functional Behavioral Assessment.

In Encyclopedia of Social Work.

Armstrong, K. H., Ogg, J. A., Sundman-Wheat, A. N., & Walsh, A. S. J. (2014). Evidence-based

interventions for children with challenging behavior. Springer.