In a Functional Behavioral Assessment for a student with autism, what step is most likely to help form a hypothesis about the function of the target behavior?

In a Functional Behavioral Assessment for a student with autism, what step is most likely to help form a hypothesis about the function of the target behavior?

• A. Listing all instructional accommodations
• B. Noting events and settings that precede the behavior
• C. Identifying the number of students who display the behavior
• D. Determining the success of consequences used to modify behavior

Answer: (B)

Noting events and settings that precede the behavior helps you form a hypothesis about why the behavior happens. By collecting ABC data—Antecedents (what happens before), Behavior, and Consequences (what happens after)—you look for patterns that connect specific triggers or situations to the target behavior. For example, if the behavior tends to occur right after a demand is placed or during transitions, the function may be to escape or avoid that demand. If the behavior is followed by attention from others, the function could be attention-seeking; if it leads to access to a preferred item or activity, the function could be tangible access; if it occurs in non-social, sensory-rich situations, a sensory function may be involved. This antecedent-focused analysis is what enables you to generate a plausible functional hypothesis. Other options don’t directly reveal why the behavior occurs: listing instructional accommodations describes what you’ll change in instruction but not why the behavior happens; counting how many students display the behavior doesn’t explain its function; and evaluating how effective consequences are helps determine intervention impact but doesn’t identify the trigger or purpose of the behavior on its own.

Noting events and settings that precede the behavior helps you form a hypothesis about why the behavior happens. By collecting ABC data—Antecedents (what happens before), Behavior, and Consequences (what happens after)—you look for patterns that connect specific triggers or situations to the target behavior. For example, if the behavior tends to occur right after a demand is placed or during transitions, the function may be to escape or avoid that demand. If the behavior is followed by attention from others, the function could be attention-seeking; if it leads to access to a preferred item or activity, the function could be tangible access; if it occurs in non-social, sensory-rich situations, a sensory function may be involved. This antecedent-focused analysis is what enables you to generate a plausible functional hypothesis.

Other options don’t directly reveal why the behavior occurs: listing instructional accommodations describes what you’ll change in instruction but not why the behavior happens; counting how many students display the behavior doesn’t explain its function; and evaluating how effective consequences are helps determine intervention impact but doesn’t identify the trigger or purpose of the behavior on its own.