Understanding Behavior as Communication: Understanding Ourselves�

Reducing provider fatigue and burnout in high-acuity behavior cases

Historical Context for Behavior

Children's Role in the Family

Children were utilities

Additional hands to help on the land, around the home and with other siblings

​

Children's Role in Society

Factory/Industrial Model

Goal: Compliant standardization of a workforce

There was limited opportunities for individualization because it would be against these

A Historic IDEA

As our culture and society has evolved and shifted to become less utility and survival based to a more human-centered, but attitudes towards compliance have yet to catch up

Attitudes and goals for behavior have historically been of compliance to adult imposed standards and needs, with the rise of greater understanding that we are all humans regardless of age, skin tone or abilities, that value shift has occurred, we are left in a place of building the wheel from scratch

We now struggle towards through this shift as a species there are un-intended consequences such as the internalization of stress and our own maladaptive responses when students do not comply with our wants and expectations.

​

​

Behavior as Communication�

Behavior is a form of communication that occurs to obtain or avoid something:

CAPS or CANS

Attention/Connection

Autonomy/A Sense of Control

Preferred/Non-Preferred Activity

Sensory Input/Retreat

​

​

​

​

Behavior as a Conversation

Dealing with the behavior directly will result in frustration on the part of the student and/or the provider

Changing what is triggering(happening before) the behavior OR the consequence (what is happening after) will create the change

The "Real" Consequences

Often, when we think of consequences we may think of punishment or getting a sense of justice, when we could be thinking what reward is this student getting from the behavior that compels them to continue.

​

Your Turn!

Let's take examples from the group of a mystery behavior you have encountered in your practice (please keep names identifiable info confidential)

​

what do we think the communication there may have been?

​

 what do we think we could change in the conversation?

​

​

High Acuity Behavior Impact on Provider Career Length

Prevalence and Determinants of Burnout Among Physical and Occupational Therapists

​

​

Authors: Balogun, Joseph A.; Titiloye, Victoria; Balogun, Adetutu; Oyeyemi, Adetoyeje; Katz, Joanne

Source: Journal of Allied Health, Volume 31, Number 3, Fall 2002, pp. 131-139(9)

Publisher: Association of Schools Advancing Health Professions

�

​

Understanding Your Behavior as Communication

People understand the world typically through 3 doors:

Behaviors

Thoughts

Feelings

​

Understanding what these are communicating to you about yourself builds self-awareness in how stress and high acuity cases can impact you

The Adult Behavior

Unconditional positive regard protects against implicit bias

Catch.

Check.

Change

Q & A

Thank you!