What Is Positive Behaviour Support?
Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) is a person-centred approach that aims at understanding and providing support to individuals who display behaviours that challenge.
This approach believes that these behaviours happen for a reason and are often a result of an unseen desire, need or concern.
Positive Behaviour Support aims to understand individuals who display behaviours that challenge. Moreover, PBS discovers why individuals display behaviours that challenge and helps people develop new skills to improve their quality of life.
It’s crucial to understand that PBS acknowledges that individuals who present behaviours that challenge may experience:
- Reduced opportunities for relationship building
- Reduced opportunities for community inclusions
- Restrictions
PBS goes beyond reducing behaviour that challenge and instead creates an environment where an individual is understood and provided with alternative behaviours that benefit the individual’s quality of life and independence.
To reach this goal, PBS focuses on understanding the factors that contribute to behaviours that challenge.
Defining and Understanding Behaviours That Challenge
Behaviours that challenge are behaviours that pose a risk of harm to the individual displaying the behaviour and anybody around them.
Some of the more common behaviours that challenge include:
- Nonverbal behaviour – pointing fingers, running away, giving rude looks
- Verbal behaviour – arguing, using offensive language, name-calling
- Hurting others – pinching, scratching, kicking, grabbing
- Withdrawn behaviour – deliberate silence, isolation from their support system
- Self-injurious behaviour – biting, burning, overeating or undereating
- Destructive behaviour – breaking objects, throwing things
These behaviours are a response to unmet needs or a difficult situation. For every behaviour, there is a reason behind the behaviour. For example, an individual with Autism who has challenges verbally communicating may engage in self-injurious behaviours to convey their need for food. Similarly, a person with dementia might become agitated when confused or disoriented. PBS finds the reason for behaviours that challenge, and helps provide people with healthier and safer alternatives
Rather than reacting to these behaviours, PBS underlines the importance of understanding and addressing the underlying factors of behaviours that challenge.
Reasons for Behaviours That Challenge
Behaviours that challenge aren’t exclusive to individuals with learning disabilities, Autism, or mental health conditions. Both neurodivergent and neurotypical individuals can exhibit behaviours that challenge. However, neurodivergent individuals may not have the skills to communicate alternative behaviours.
PBS provides individuals with behaviours that challenge the necessary skills to communicate their needs safely.
Some of the more common reasons for why behaviours that challenge occur include:
- Communication challenges: When individuals cannot express their needs verbally, they might display behaviours that challenge
- Sensory challenges: Individuals who experience sensory processing challenges might exhibit behaviours that challenge when exposed to certain sensory stimuli
- Physical discomfort: Individuals might display behaviour that challenges if they experience physical discomfort, such as pain
- Anxiety or stress: Individuals might display behaviour that challenges when they experience anxiety or stress
- Emotional dysregulation: When individuals have challenges managing their emotions, they may display behaviours that challenge
It’s important to understand that behaviour that challenges can have other triggers besides those mentioned above. Every individual is different and expresses themselves in various ways. PBS focuses on the behaviours of individuals to understand the causes of the behaviours.
The Goal of PBS
The overall aim of the Positive Behaviour Support approach is to provide collaborative and person-centred support to improve the quality of an individual’s life.
Positive Behaviour Support avoids punishment and blame. It is person-centric, focusing on compassion and understanding the reason for behaviours that challenge. PBS focuses on developing and understanding an individual’s skills, abilities and interests to improve their overall quality of life and create methods suitable for the person they are serving.
Additionally, by understanding an individual’s interests and skills, support teams can effectively communicate with the person and help them engage in community activities. This helps the individual socialise, gain independence and create relationships within the community.
What Is a Positive Behaviour Support Plan?
A Positive Behaviour Support plan underlines strategies to support individuals who display behaviours that challenge. The process of developing this plan is collaborative and involves the individual, the support team, their family and PBS practitioners.
The PBS plan will outline the behaviours of concern and the impact these behaviours have on the individual and support team. A Positive Behaviour Support plan will also explain the reason behind behaviours that challenge and what the individual is expressing. Lastly, the plan will include the developed strategies for support.
Proactive and Reactive Strategies
Positive Behaviour Support plans include proactive and reactive strategies.
Proactive strategies aim to create supportive environments that promote positive behaviour while reducing the likelihood of behaviours that challenge.
Proactive strategies can include:
- Environmental modifications
- Developing new skills or leveraging on existing ones
- Positive reinforcement
- Structured routines
- Supportive relationships
By implementing proactive strategies, individuals are more likely to achieve their personal goals, increase the quality of their life, and gain independence.
Reactive strategies respond to behaviours that challenge once they occur and aim to de-escalate the situation and keep the individual safe.
Some reactive strategies include:
- De-escalation techniques
- Crisis prevention
- Reassurance
- Communication plan
The main goal of reactive strategies is to minimise the risk of harm during behaviours that challenge and promote safety.
PBS Behaviour Model Stages
The Positive Behaviour Support model stages deliver methods for successfully applying PBS. Support teams can optimise success using PBS model stages and following a person-centric method.
The PBS model stage is separated into three sections: the assess stage, the manage stage, and the prevention stage.
Assess Stage
The assess stage underlines the triggers causing behaviours that challenge, and the needs of the individual when they display this behaviour. This stage identifies the overall needs and abilities of the individual. It also looks at the strengths and skills of the individual and their family.
Manage Stage
During the manage stage, support providers design methods for responding to behaviour that challenges. The methods are for responding before or after behaviours that challenge (reactive strategies). Support providers develop ways to de-escalate the situation and behaviours before the individual displays behaviours that challenge.
Prevention Stage
The prevention stage aims to reduce behaviours that challenge. It does this by minimising triggers. The strategies should be tailored to the individual’s needs and requirements, improving their quality of life.
Who Can Benefit From PBS?
Positive Behaviour Support can benefit many individuals requiring complex care and support.
Individuals with learning disabilities, Autism, or dementia may display behaviours that challenge due to difficulties communicating their needs. PBS can immensely benefit the quality of their everyday lives.
Furthermore, young people and adults with mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, or PTSD may display behaviours that challenge as a way to cope with their emotions. PBS can help identify the triggers and provide strategies to reduce harmful behaviour.
Adolescents and children with conditions such as ADHD, conduct disorder, or oppositional defiant disorder may benefit from PBS and positive reinforcements.
Overall, any individual that displays behaviours that challenge can benefit from a person-centred framework. PBS ensures that each individual is supported with empathy, compassion, and care.
Unique Community Services Applies PBS Within Tailored Person-Centred Care
Unique Community Services provides tailored professional and humanised services for complex care needs. We understand the importance of Positive Behaviour Support and how it can transform the lives of individuals and their families.
Unique Community Services has in-house PBS teams that provide person-centric services to the people we support and their families. All clinicians are trained in PRO-ACT SCIPr, a proactive and compassionate approach to behaviours that challenge.
Contact our offices to learn more about Positive Behaviour Support and how we can support you or a loved one.
