Practitioners often report that they do not conduct functional analyses because they do not have a therapy room or sufficient staffing to maintain safety during analyses of severe problem behavior. However, when the reinforcers suspected of influencing severe problem behavior are simultaneously and immediately provided following behavior that is reported to precede severe problem behavior, sufficiently informative and safe analyses can be conducted without therapy rooms or additional staffing.

This point is illustrated by Jessica Slaton, M.Ed., BCBA,of the Nashoba Learning Group (NLG) in the video below in which she describes one of her experiences implementing the practical functional assessment process in the home of a 12-year-old boy with autism named Max.

Jessica Slaton provides an update on Max’s progress in the video below.