Helping Your Family Thrive

A Practical Guide to Parenting With Positive Behavior Support

Authors

Meme Hieneman, Ph.D., BCBA
Home and Community Positive Behavior Support Network
Palm Harbor, Florida
Sarah Fefer, Ph.D., BCBA
The University of Massachusetts Amherst
Shane Isley, M.S., BCBA
West Coast Behavioural Consultants, Ltd. (WCB)
Vancouver, British Columbia
Missy Sieders, B.A.
PEAK Parent Training and Information Center
Baltimore · London · Sydney

About the Authors

This book is written by three board certified behavior analysts and a parent/professional who all have extensive experience working with families.

Meme Hieneman, Ph.D., BCBA, Consultant with Positive Behavior Support Applications, Faculty Member at Purdue University Global, and President of the Home and Community Positive Behavior Support Network, Palm Harbor, Florida.

Sarah Fefer, Ph.D., BCBA, Associate Professor of School Psychology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of Student Development, School Psychology program.

Shane Isley, M.S., BCBA, Consultant with the Performance Thinking Network and Founder/Director of West Coast Behavioural Consultants, Ltd (WCB).

Missy Sieders, B.A., Parent Advisor at PEAK Parent Training and Information Center in Colorado, Certified Nurse’s Aide for daughter who experiences an intellectual disability.

Foreword

Positive behavior support (PBS) emerged in the late 1980s as a systematic process for developing and implementing research-based procedures for addressing the serious challenging behaviors of individuals. PBS was designed as an educative approach that relied on individualized assessment and avoided reliance on aversive techniques.

Introduction and Overview

Section I of this book introduces you to positive behavior support.

In Chapter 1, we explain its basic principles and approaches as a foundation for supporting or improving the day-to-day behavior of your entire family. In Chapter 2, we discuss how this approach applies to families, with a special consideration of the unique variations in family compositions, values, perspectives, dynamics, and functioning.

Introducing Positive Behavior Support

Positive behavior support (PBS) is a practical, research-based approach for supporting people’s behavior within their typical daily routines and settings. It was originally defined as an approach for addressing behavioral challenges of people with disabilities that combined the principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA) with person and family-centered values.

Elements of Effective Support

PBS is a process and set of principles to guide planning and decision making, rather than rigid procedures. Given this, PBS can be tailored to essentially any situation by ensuring that plans are based on a complete understanding of the home and community environment and family preferences, needs, and patterns of behavior.

Core elements of effective support include:

• Understanding behavior, including the context in which it occurs and the purpose(s) it serves for the individual.
• Developing comprehensive support plans that include proactive, teaching, and management strategies.
• Improving lives by not only addressing challenges but also helping families thrive overall.

Summary: What is Positive Behavior Support?

PBS has been applied successfully across various people and settings and aligns with recommended best practices. PBS focuses on:

1. Understanding why behavior occurs and continues to occur.
2. Developing comprehensive, individualized strategies to prevent, teach, and reinforce behavior.
3. Improving the lives of all involved.