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What are the four functions of challenging behaviour?
Challenging behaviour usually serves a purpose for the person showing it - even when that isn't obvious in the moment. A widely used model in behaviour-support and frontline training identifies four core functions:
- Attention - seeking interaction or response from others, positive or negative
- Escape or avoidance - trying to get out of a task, demand, or situation
- Access - trying to obtain a preferred item, activity, or outcome
- Sensory - internally driven, regardless of how others respond
Understanding why a behaviour is happening - not just what it looks like - is what allows staff to respond proportionately rather than reactively, and it's central to positive behaviour support (PBS) approaches used across health, social care, and education settings.
Stand2's Managing Challenging Behaviour Training covers how to recognise these functions in practice - see also what is the most common cause of challenging behaviour for related ground.
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