Translated from the Portuguese original. Read the original (Português)
Challenging behaviors (intense tantrums, aggression, self-injury, or escape) don't happen "out of nowhere": they have a function — they serve to get something or to communicate a need. Once we discover what that behavior is for, we can teach a better way for the person to reach the same goal, with respect, prevention, and dignity, instead of simply punishing it.
Challenging behaviors (or problem behaviors) are responses — such as intense tantrums, aggression, self-injury, or escape/avoidance — that cause risk or harm to the person or to others, or that get in the way of their participation in daily life. Rather than "character flaws," they are understood as behaviors that serve a function for the person who shows them.
The core principle: every behavior has a function
The most important idea in this entry is simple and powerful: no behavior happens without a reason. Even what seems "to make no sense" is actually "serving some purpose" — it's communicating a need that the person, in that moment, couldn't express any other way.
Instead of asking only "how do I make this stop?", the more useful question is "what is this behavior trying to accomplish?". That shift in perspective changes everything: we stop fighting the person and start understanding and teaching.
The four most common functions
Research in behavior analysis shows that most challenging behaviors serve one of these four functions (or a combination of them):
- Getting attention — the behavior brings the person someone's look, speech, or contact.
- Getting access to an item or activity — the behavior leads to getting a toy, food, a phone, or continuing something enjoyable.
- Escaping or avoiding a demand — the behavior causes an uncomfortable task, requirement, or situation to be delayed or stopped.
- Automatic / sensory — the sensation produced by the behavior itself is already rewarding (for example, relief, stimulation, or internal regulation), without depending on other people.
Investigating before acting: functional analysis
Before trying to "control" a behavior, it's necessary to understand what it does for the person. That's what functional (behavior) assessment or analysis is for: carefully observing the antecedents, the behavior, and the consequences to identify the function before planning any intervention.
This step avoids the most common mistake: acting in the dark. The same tantrum might serve to escape a task in one child and to get attention in another — and the right strategy is different in each case.
Before "controlling," investigate the triggersMany challenging behaviors appear for reasons that have nothing to do with a "tantrum": pain, sensory overload, hunger, tiredness, and difficulty communicating. Addressing these needs can solve a good part of the problem before any technique is even used.
Explore each function
Tap the tabs to see an example of each function and what tends to help:
Function: getting attention
Example: the child screams or hits right when the adult is on the phone — and, by screaming, immediately gets a look and speech.
What tends to help: teaching and valuing an appropriate way to ask for attention (calling by name, touching an arm, using a card or picture) and offering attention before the difficult behavior shows up, instead of only when it happens.
Function: getting access to an item/activity
Example: the person drops to the floor on hearing "no" about a phone or a treat, and the tantrum usually ends with the item being handed over.
What tends to help: teaching a functional way to ask ("want," pointing, a gesture, a symbol), setting clear rules ahead of time about when the item is available, and reinforcing waiting with small steps.
Function: escaping or avoiding a demand
Example: a writing task is given and aggression or escape quickly follows; when the activity is removed, the behavior stops.
What tends to help: teaching the person to ask for a break or help, adjusting the task's difficulty, breaking it into smaller steps, and making the demand more predictable and tolerable.
Function: automatic / sensory
Example: the behavior happens even when the person is alone, because the sensation it produces is already rewarding on its own (relief, stimulation, or regulation).
What tends to help: offering safe sensory alternatives that provide a similar sensation, adjusting the environment, and, when there is risk, seeking specialized support to protect the person.
Positive intervention: teaching, not just containing
After identifying the function, the most effective and ethical path is positive: teaching an alternative behavior that serves the same function. Instead of asking the person to simply "stop," we show them a better and safer way to get what they need.
- Functional communication training (FCT) — teaching the person to communicate what they want (asking for attention, an item, a break) in a way that works as well as the challenging behavior used to.
- Adjusting the antecedents — changing what comes before (reducing triggers, making the environment predictable, offering choices) to prevent the behavior.
- Differential reinforcement — valuing and strengthening appropriate behaviors, giving them more room and payoff than the difficult behavior.
Positive Behavior Support (PBS)The Positive Behavior Support approach focuses on prevention, teaching, and dignity. Instead of resorting to punishment, it seeks to change environments, teach skills, and improve quality of life — treating the person with respect throughout the whole process.
Myth to undo"A difficult behavior is just a lack of limits, and punishment fixes it." Punishment may interrupt the behavior in the moment, but it doesn't teach anything and doesn't meet the need behind it — so the behavior tends to come back, sometimes more intensely. Teaching a functional alternative addresses the cause, not just the symptom.
Test your understanding
Quick quiz
Three questions to reinforce the concept. You'll see the explanation right away.
Further reading
- Iwata, B. A., Dorsey, M. F., Slifer, K. J., Bauman, K. E., & Richman, G. S. "Toward a functional analysis of self-injury." Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis (JABA), 1982 (reprinted 1994).
- Carr, E. G., & Durand, V. M. "Reducing behavior problems through functional communication training." Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis (JABA), 1985.
- Positive Behavior Support (PBS) literature.
This entry is educational and does not replace assessment, diagnosis or treatment by a qualified health professional. Every person is unique — for a specific case, seek individual guidance.