This guide describes functional behavior assessment (FBA), a highly regarded strategy that parents and professionals can use to identify the factors contributing to the problem behavior.

As the book explains, children and adults with ASDs are susceptible to unwanted behaviors due to difficulties with communication skills, social skills, and narrow interests. For example, a nonverbal adult engages in head-banging to obtain beads reserved for times when he needs calming; a child with social skills deficits inappropriately seeks attention by hitting classmates; or an adolescent hyperfocused on one tv program irritates everyone by constantly talking about it.

An FBA helps to determine what purpose the behavior serves for the individual and the specific circumstances that led to learning the behavior in the first place. Later on, the assessment is used to develop an intervention plan to help the individual unlearn the behavior. Anyone can learn the basics of FBA.