Defining
PBS
Positive Behavior Support (PBS) is a
systematic approach to preventing or reducing challenging behaviors, and,
eventually, to enhancing quality of life for individuals and support providers.
The PBS process
includes:
- Preventing problem behaviors by assessing and restructuring
an individual's environment to try to control and eliminate events that
may be triggers for the problem behavior;
- Teaching socially acceptable new skills to substitute
for the challenging behaviors, which can then accomplish the same function
as the problem behavior;
- Reinforcing socially acceptable alternative behaviors
that can be strengthened to complete with the problem behavior;
- Correcting (and then re-teaching) minor problem
behaviors immediately whenever they occur.
A central concept
in PBS is the notion of the "function" of behavior. That is, all behavior is
seen to be meaningfulness, purposeful, and functional for the individual or
else he or she would not continue to engage in the behavior. The key in PBS is to determine the function
of the problem behavior, and then to teach socially acceptable skills and
behaviors that are just as effective and efficient in accomplishing the
function of the problem behavior for the individual. As a result, the individual will not have to
use the problem behavior to either obtain (or escape/avoid) things, people,
activities, or events, etc. Over time,
as new socially acceptable behaviors are learned, the challenging behaviors
will become irrelevant, inefficient, and ineffective, and individuals will then
be much more likely to be able to achieve a better quality of life.
Beginning
in the early 1990s, PBS principles and strategies were expanded from being used
only with individuals to being implemented across large numbers of students at
a school-wide level. This positive
approach to addressing discipline problems in an entire school is called school-wide
PBS.