Behaviour as communication

Also called Behaviour is communication, Communicative function of behaviour, Challenging behaviour and communication

When a person can't tell you in words, they tell you another way. Reading it as a message, not as a problem, changes what you do next.

What it is

Behaviour as communication is the principle that what a person does, especially when it's hard to be around, is telling you something they can't say another way. Hitting, screaming, running, refusing, biting, rocking, withdrawing: each has a function, and the function is usually one of a handful. I'm in pain. I want that. I don't want this. I need you. I need less of this noise. I'm frightened. I'm bored.

It's the foundation of positive behaviour support, and it's the reason a speech and language therapist belongs in any team looking at behaviour that's described as challenging. The behaviour isn't the problem to solve; the missing way of saying the thing is.

Who it can help

People with a learning disability, autistic people, people with dementia, people with a brain injury, young children, and anyone whose spoken language isn't up to what they need to say. And their families, teachers and support staff, who are the ones doing the reading.

It's a way of understanding, not an excuse for everything. Some behaviour is a seizure, a medication effect or plain pain, and those need a doctor, not an interpretation. The first question in any behaviour plan is a medical one.

How it works

The method is watching and recording. What happened just before (the setting, the demand, the noise, the person who walked in). What the person did. What happened straight after (what they got, what stopped, who came). Over a couple of weeks, the pattern shows the function: the screaming happens when the room is loud and stops when they're taken out, so it means "too loud, get me out".

Then two things happen at once. The environment changes so the trigger is less frequent. And the person is taught, and given, a way of saying the same thing that works better and costs less: a card, a sign, a symbol on a device, a word. If OUT on a Talk board reliably gets them out, the screaming loses its job. This is called functional communication training, and it only works if the new message is honoured every single time, faster than the old behaviour ever was.

Communication dictionaries record the signals that are already there. Positive behaviour support plans set out the whole approach and are what a service should have for anyone whose behaviour is described as challenging.

Getting started

For one week, write down every incident in three columns: before, behaviour, after. Don't interpret yet; just record.

At the end of the week, look for what the behaviour reliably gets. That's the message. Give the person an easier way to send it and answer it every time.

Check for pain first. Ears, teeth, stomach, constipation, reflux, period pain. A large share of "behaviour" in people who can't say "it hurts" is just that. The health words on their system should include the body parts and the word PAIN.

Where to get help

BILD sets standards for positive behaviour support and trains services. Mencap supports families of people with a learning disability whose behaviour is described as challenging. The National Autistic Society covers distressed behaviour in autistic people. Your GP can refer to the community learning disability team, which should include speech and language therapy and behaviour support. The Challenging Behaviour Foundation runs a family helpline.