Behavioral Intervention Plans

BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION PLANS
Effective behavior interventions are planned, data-driven, and based on an assessment of the behav- ior. Undertaking an “intervention” without an assessment or a plan can lead to increased misbehavior. A BIP is individualized for the student, designed for the settings where the behavior occurs, and imple- mented consistently across those settings. Follow-up, monitoring, and revision of the BIP are essential as the identified inappropriate behavior is replaced by an acceptable behavior.
An FBA is the basis for developing an effective BIP. A student’s BIP is designed to address posi- tively specific individual needs. BIP components should address:
• How to teach the student an appropriate replacement behavior;
• How to alter or neutralize any known setting events;
• How to alter or manipulate the events that typically occur before the behavior (antecedents);
• How to alter or manipulate the events that typically occur after the behavior (consequences) to positively reinforce the appropriate replacement behavior; and
• How personnel are to respond consistently to occurrences across settings.
Depending upon the identified features of a behavior, such as its frequency, duration and topogra- phy, it may be necessary to begin with a series of approximations that will serve the same function for the student while more extensive modifications are developed. With approximations, students receive reinforcement for successful small intermediate steps along a continuum. This provides school personnel time to make any needed environmental or curricular modifications to support the desired replacement behavior. Selecting replacement behaviors which require less effort to display than the current behavior is important. A replacement behavior that takes more effort to display than the existing behavior is unlikely to occur. Thus, the goal is to carefully select and directly teach replacement responses that are easier to do than the current behavior and serve the same function. If a replacement behavior does not meet the student’s need, the replacement behavior will not persist.
Even after appropriate replacement behaviors are identified and instruction has facilitated the stu- dent’s success in using an appropriate replacement behavior, events will occur that may hasten the return of the inappropriate behavior. To increase the likelihood of a student exhibiting the desired replacement behavior in settings formerly associated with the identified inappropriate behavior, various modifications to these settings may be needed.