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Functional assessment and functional analysis are processes that have been applied successfully in work with people who have developmental disabilities, but they have been used rarely with students who experience emotional or behavioral disorders. In the present study, five students in elementary school programs for severe emotional disturbance participated in a comprehensive functional assessment process designed to yield a useful understanding of their desirable and undesirable behaviors. Interviews, record reviews, and direct classroom observations led to the development of individualized hypotheses regarding relationships between classroom events and the occurrence of target behaviors. Subsequently, direct manipulations (i.e., functional analyses) were conducted to test each of the hypotheses in the context of regularly-occurring classroom activities. These analyses demonstrate important influences that certain classroom variables can exert over individual student’s behavior. The process and results are discussed with regard to the need for improved methods for understanding student responding, and the benefits that functional assessment can offer programs of educational and behavioral support.

We assessed the effects of a package consisting of self-evaluation via videotape feedback procedures on inappropriate and appropriate peer interactions of children with externalizing and internalizing behavioral problems. The children were selected from three inclusive classrooms, and all of the experimental sessions included peers who did not evidence behavioral problems. Multiple baseline and reversal designs were used to evaluate the impact of the intervention package on the diverse patterns of behavior displayed by the different groups of children. The results showed substantial increases in appropriate interactions for children with internalizing behavioral problems and substantial decreases in inappropriate interactions for children with externalizing behavioral problems. Two measures of social validity confirmed the presence of the externalizing and internalizing characteristics and offered validation for the effects of the intervention. The results are discussed in relation to the existing literature and the need for further research on social skills, generalization, and comprehensive support for children with emotional and behavioral problems.

Functional assessment and functional analysis are processes that have been applied successfully in work with people who have developmental disabilities, but they have been used rarely with students who experience emotional or behavioral disorders. In the present study, five students in elementary school programs for severe emotional disturbance participated in a comprehensive functional assessment process designed to yield a useful understanding of their desirable and undesirable behaviors. Interviews, record reviews, and direct classroom observations led to the development of individualized hypotheses regarding relationships between classroom events and the occurrence of target behaviors. Subsequently, direct manipulations (i.e., functional analyses) were conducted to test each of the hypotheses in the context of regularly-occurring classroom activities. These analyses demonstrate important influences that certain classroom variables can exert over individual student's behavior. The process and results are discussed with regard to the need for improved methods for understanding student responding, and the benefits that functional assessment can offer programs of educational and behavioral support.