observing and describing behavior pre-service workshop

Observing and Describing Behavior

Pre-Service Workshop

Contingencies ofBehavior

An observable pattern orrelationship exists between a

behavior:

1. The events which precede the behavior

(Antecedent)

and

2. The events which follow the behavior

(Consequence)


Accurately specifying the actions of a person, NOT

intent or motive

Verbally reflecting behavior to youth in a

descriptive, nonjudgmental manner

What are the circumstances surrounding the behavior?

• What general activity is the person involved in?

• When did the behavior occur?

• Where did the behavior occur?

• What were the conditions immediately preceding the behavior?

What exactly is the person doing?

• Watch the person’s body.

• Watch the person’s facial expression.

• Listen to what the person says.

• Watch the intensity of the above behaviors.

Why is it important to be Specific and Objective?

It makes the child aware of specific appropriate and inappropriate

behaviors.

It helps the child understand what is expected, thus increasing the

likelihood of success.

It helps staff develop strong positive relationships with youth.

WHEN MAKING BEHAVIORALDESCRIPTIONS: (YOUR BEHAVIOR)

- BE SPECIFIC

- MAKE YOUR DESCRIPTION REPEATABLE

- USE A CALM VOICE

- USE EXACT QUOTES OR “YOU SAID SOMETHING LIKE . . . . “

- DON’T FORGET BODY LANGUAGE

- DESCRIBE THINGS NOT DONE

- DEMONSTRATE WHEN NECESSARY

- AVOID JUDGMENTAL AND NON- SPECIFIC TERMS

BehaviorBehaviorC omparisonsC omparisons

V a g u e B e h a v io r s S p e c if ic B e h a v io r s

A g g r e s s iv e

C o o p e r a t iv e

D is r e s p e c t fu l

O n T a s k

H o r s e P la y

G o o d C it iz e n s h ip

O b n o x io u s

S p a c y

R e s p o n s ib le

In a p p r o p r ia te

Observing and Describing worksheet

• Which of the following are not specific descriptions of behavior? (Rewrite the ones that are not)– Joanne Looked down at the floor and

stuck out her lower lip when I told her she couldn’t buy ice cream

– Manuel threw the book at Andre

– Jennifer is always getting into mischief

– Bobby is just plain stupid


– Jackie left her coat on the living room floor after school

– Aunt Mary is always nagging me

– Michael is selfish

– Susan was ten minutes late to school today

– Denny is hyperactive

– Whitney shows a bad attitude in school

– Steve is a real problem when it is time to go to bed


– Elizabeth is a spoiled brat– Lisa didn’t share her extra

notebook paper with Yolanda this morning

– Jeremy took a long time getting ready for school

– Cindy is a very will-behaved child

RESOURCES


• Observing and Describing Behavior– The ability to accurately observe and

describe what other people do is crucial for Family Teachers in several aspects of their job. First, it is particularly useful in the continual process of evaluation that occurs from the time a youth enters a program until the time he/she leaves; secondly, it is extremely useful in teaching youth new skills; and thirdly, it may be beneficial for interactions with parents, teachers, and other community members.


– The evaluative process you will be learning involves looking carefully at those things a youth does that are particularly appropriate or inappropriate and then carefully specifying in terms of overt behaviors what occurred, the conditions under which the behaviors occurred, and what the outcomes of the behaviors were. The skills involved in this evaluative process play an important role in the formation of feedback that Family Teachers need to provide for the youths in their program. Frequently, the youths do not know what behaviors our under what specific condition those behaviors are likely to get them into trouble. It is the Family Teacher’s task to provide feedback to the youth on which behaviors might be helpful and which might be detrimental for their success in the community.

When to Observe and Describe Behavior

• Although the evaluative process is a continuous one and you will need to be generally aware of what each youth is doing throughout the day, you will find that there are certain times when you will have to "zero in" on behaviors. These times will occur:

1. when you notice something is wrong (a problem exists),

2. when you notice something is particularly "right," or

3. When you are watching a youth practice a new skill.

Inappropriate BehaviorsFamily Teachers usually identify the

existence of a problem when something a youth does:1. Conflicts with the norms of

society (laws, social codes, etc.),2. breaks a rule in the home,3. is physically harmful to an animal or

person,4. is an extreme emotional reaction,5. is aversive to others,6. puts the reputation of the home in

danger,7. will lead to negative consequences for

the youth, or8. is not appropriate for the

circumstances under which it occurs.

• However, although a Family Teacher may be aware that something is wrong with a youth's behavior in a given situation, he/she may be unable to pinpoint the problem immediately. The following is an illustration of how a Family Teacher couple used the skills of behavioral observation and description to pinpoint a problem behavior.

• A Family Teacher began to notice that he felt uncomfortable whenever he was giving corrective feedback to Chris. When the Family Teacher initially observed the youth, he found that Chris was using eye contact, his posture was straight, his hands were still (not fiddling with other things), and that he always gave an appropriate verbal response after receiving feedback. All of these behaviors were classified as appropriate by the Family Teacher. The Family Teachers talked with each other about the problem and while initially only one Family Teacher had been bothered with it, they both agreed that there must be some problem with the way Chris was behaving. During the next interactions with Chris, one Family Teacher gave the fine while the other observed Chris' reactions. After an observation or two, it was discovered that while fines were given, Chris would repeatedly clench and grind his teeth. Once the behavior was defined, it was very easy to describe it to Chris, to explain that this behavior made interacting unpleasant, and to teach him to control his behavior when receiving critical feedback. This is an important skill for each youth to learn, for there will be countless times in each of their lives when they will receive critical feedback from parents, teachers, and employers and it will be to their benefits if they can react in a reinforcing (at least neutral) manner.

Appropriate Behaviors

• Family Teachers also find it necessary to zero in on appropriate behaviors as they are emitted in the home. Attending to the positive behaviors of a youth not only forms the basis of a positive relationship with that youth, but also points out to the youth which behaviors are worth emitting in similar circumstances in the future. Generally, a behavior is appropriate if it:

1. is pleasing to you, other adults, and the youth's peers,

2. is an attempt by the youth to learn a new skill (e.g. maintenance tasks, academic skills, social skills, self-care skills),

3. is an attempt to correct inappropriate behavior or avoid some previous problem behavior

4. is an approximation to an appropriate behavior,5. follows a house rule or maintenance guideline,6. is appropriate for the conditions under which it

occurs, or7. Will lead to positive consequences for the youth.• In pinpointing appropriate as well as

inappropriate behavior, Family Teachers need to consider the history of each youth, how long each youth has been in the program, what behaviors need to be changed the quickest, and which behaviors are most in need of reinforcement. With these considerations you will probably be "zeroing in" on different behaviors for each youth, developing a complete behavioral description of the behavior, and providing the youth with feedback on that behavior.

Teaching New Skills• Behavioral observation and descriptions are

also very useful for Family Teachers when teaching the youth new skills. A youth who is having difficulty in the community may know only a limited number of ways to respond in various situations, and these responses may result in unfavorable consequences for the youth. By learning new skills, he/she can improve his/her behavior in such a way that he/she is more likely to receive favorable consequences in the community. After you describe a new skill to .a youth, you will be asking him/her to practice that skill. While he/she is practicing, it will be important for you to observe and describe what the youth does, to determine which of his behaviors follow your description of the skill and which do not, and then use these findings as a basis for feedback to the youth.

Out of Home Contacts• Besides being useful in teaching interactions with youths,

observation and description skills are also important in interactions outside the immediate home environment. For example, it might be necessary to observe the behaviors of parents or teachers while they interact with a youth, define these behaviors for yourself and those you have observed and then tactfully describe to the parent, or teacher how those behaviors might be helpful or' detrimental to the youth's progress.

• Thus, in order to be effective in many areas, a Family Teacher must know how to observe and describe behaviors. Behavioral observation may be more difficult than one would suppose; as a Family Teacher, you must know what to look for when multiple behaviors of such youths are occurring simultaneously or in rapid succession and which of these behaviors are most seriously in need of correction or reinforcement. To provide the youths with complete feedback on their behavior it will be necessary, while observing, to cue on various aspects of a person's behaviors such that a complex event can be broken down into its simplest components. Here are three, questions to ask yourself while attempting to carefully pinpoint the components of the event:

1. what are the circumstances surrounding the behavior,2. what is the person doing, and3. what is the outcome of the behavior?

The following are some cues to attend to for each of these questions:

1. What are the circumstances surrounding the behavior? 1. What general activity is the person involved in? Is he

playing cards, washing dishes, talking to a peer, etc.? Is he using the proper materials for that activity?

2. When did the behavior occur? Was it appropriate for the time it occurred? Does it frequently occur at this time?

3. Where did the behavior occur? Was it appropriate for the place it occurred? Does it frequently occur here?

4. What were the conditions immediately preceding the behavior? What happened just before the behavior occurred? Was an instruction given? Was a request pleasantly made; unpleasantly made? What did the other person do?

2. What is the person doing?1. Watch the person's body. Attend to large body

movements like walking, running, sitting and general posture. Also attend .to fine motor movements like hand gestures, finger movements, face touching. Watch any motor interaction with the physical environment like manipulation of objects. Also attend to absence of movement when movement is required (e.g., failure to shake hands during an introduction).

2. Watch the person's facial expression. Attend to eye contact, eye movement, frowns, smiles, grimaces, absence of expression.

3. Listen to what the person says. Attend to the specific words used, the way he says them (e.g. tone of voice), and other communicative devices like sighs, laughs, etc. Attend to the absence of speech (e.g. failure to acknowledge a request).

4. Watch the intensity of the above behaviors.Attend to how often it occurs, how long it lasts, and its magnitude (is the voice soft versus loud).

3. What is the outcome of the behavior?1. Is the youth involved in a self-care,

maintenance, or academic task? Attend to whether the task was completed, whether each part of the task is completed in the correct order, whether the area was cleaned up and all materials put where they belong, and attend to the condition of the final product.

2. Is the youth involved in a social behavior? Attend to what the other people involved are doing and how they are reacting to the youth. How does the youth's behavior affect them? Is the youth punished or rewarded for his behavior? Is this a frequent behavior pattern? Is this outcome viewed as a problem?

• For example, if you have just described to a youth (who had been having a problem correctly emptying the trash) the task of emptying a trash can and were watching her practice that task, you might watch to see whether she picks up the trash can liner with both hands (category 1.a). Although she may not have any particular facial expression, you might note whether her face is relaxed or whether it shows displeasure (category l.b). Then you might observe whether she ties the trash bag and carries it outside, and when she returns, whether she puts a new liner in the trash can (categories l.a and 3.a). As is the case here, you will find that not all of the previously mentioned cues apply to every situation you will encounter. For example, it may not be necessary to attend to what the youth was saying in this case since conversation may not be an important component of this task or the youth may not be having any problems regarding verbalizations.

Once you have observed a behavior, it will be necessary to describe it in exact behavioral terms or put it into words another Family Teacher or youth can clearly understand. Often, behaviors are described in such vague ways that the description can serve no purpose in helping the youth. For example, describing a youth as "having a bad attitude" when he/she is asked to complete a task, may have one meaning for you and another meaning for someone else. In addition, it does not describe the specific behaviors which are appropriate (and should be continued) or the behaviors that are inappropriate (and need to be changed). When describing behavior, then it is necessary to concentrate on observable events (those listed in categories 1.a-3.b above) and to be specific. In your description of the behavior you should reduce your definition to a form where it could be repeated by someone who had not originally observed the situation. As a general rule try to eliminate all adverbs and adjectives that do not add to the behavioral specificity of the description. Replace the unnecessary adverbs and adjectives with a more detailed breakdown of the behavior. For example, instead of saying that a youth has a "bad attitude" you might define his behavior as frowning, saying things like "I'm not going to do that lousy job," and slamming the nearest door when he is asked to complete a task.

Here are some examples of vague and specific descriptions of

behavior:

• Value Descriptions • Theodore is always

sloppy • Sue was friendly to Bob • Steven teased his girl

• Specific Behavioral Descriptions

• Theodore usually has his shirt tails left out instead of tucked in, his hair is greasy. There is always dirt under his nails and since he doesn't wash his clothes, they are wrinkled.

• When Sue saw Bob, she maintained eye contact, smiled and said "Good morning," and asked Bob if he would walk to school with her.

• Steven told his girlfriend that he was going to pour some water on her hair.

• In the following examples of simple definitions of behavior, circle the numbers of those which are specific, behavioral definitions of behavior,

1. Susie is moody and disrespectful to me.2. Kevin sits with his chin touching his chest during family

conference.3. Mike slammed the door so hard that the picture shook on

the wall.4. Harold and Jeff took a long time coming home from

school.5. John was polite to the neighbor and his wife.6. Steven answered the phone correctly when it rang.7. Patsy rolled her eyes around and stared at the ceiling

while the Family Teacher was giving a point fine.8. Paul did a poor job washing his face.9. Kathy said to Mary, "Go jump in the lake" when Mary

asked Kathy to help her bring in the dishes.10. Tim was 15 minutes late to class on three days last week

- Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.

In the following description of a complex series of behaviors, underline the descriptions that are specific behavioral descriptions and circle the vague descriptions.

The Family Teacher asked for a volunteer to wash the dishes. John volunteered grudgingly. Then he proceeded to turn on the cold water so that it splashed on the wall, squeezed in too much soap, and filled the sink halfway. As he stood by the sink, he seemed to be in a bad mood. He said, "Why did I volunteer for this?" (in a sarcastic tone) and "Hey, does anyone want to do this?" He then wiped each dish with his fingers and put it in the dish drainer in a way which dishes could be easily broken if disturbed. The dishes were not clean and he left the area in disarray.

Second Hand Observation

• In many situations, the Family Teacher is unable to actually observe a person's behavior first hand. There will be times when youth in the home, parents, teachers, neighbors, and other persons in the community observe a youth's problem behaviors and the Family Teacher must obtain the required information from those persons. There will be other times when one of the youth has a problem concerning another person (parent, boy/girl friend, employer, etc.) and the Family Teacher must determine what the problem is in order to counsel the youth about how he can improve these relations. In these cases, the information obtained depends on the Family Teacher's ability to lead the source to key on specific behaviors. The Family Teacher will want to know the same information he/she might collect if he/she had observed the behaviors first hand: body movement, facial expression, verbalizations, intensity of the behaviors, conditions surrounding the behaviors, and the final product of the behavior. Thus the Family Teacher usually resorts to asking a series of questions about these categories. However, it is very important that the Family Teacher not play the role of "interrogator." He/she must always maintain a comfortable and positive working relationship with these sources and should thus proceed tactfully. This is usually accomplished by interspersing comments on the situation (e.g., this has happened before), reinforcement for the provider of information (e.g., "I'm glad you're telling me this), comments of situation e.g.., that must have been a difficult situation) throughout the questioning process, and give rationales to provider why specificity is needed (e.g., we want to find a successful method of dealing with this problem).

• In general, the Family Teacher should listen to theinformation volunteered and select those parts that will be helpful when teaching the youth. If the person providing the information fails to give a behavioral description of what happened, it will be necessary to get them to specify the events that took place in closer detail, either by questioning them about the specific behaviors they observed or by reviewing with them the sections of their Volunteered information that seems most relevant. You should try to work your questions in a manner that prompts your source to be behavioral and specific in their answer. For example, if you say "What exactly is Bob's problem in class?" you will be more likely to receive an accurate description of the problem than if you say "What is his problem in class?" So by using words such as "exactly" and "specifically" or phrases like "can you give me some examples of..." you will not only receive more precise behavioral descriptions, but also save yourself and your source valuable time that might otherwise be wasted in asking non-behavioral questions and receiving non-behavioral answers.

• The Family Teachers should mentally run through the cues of observing behavior and formulate questions that will obtain specific descriptions of the observable events that took place. Here are some examples of questions you might use:

1. "What specifically did the youth (your parents, your girlfriend, your teacher) do?“

2. "What exactly did she do physically?"3. "What did he say exactly?"4. "How did she look facially?"5. "Exactly how long did this behavior last?"6. "Have you noticed it occurring in the past?"7. "Exactly how frequent is this behavior?"8. "When exactly did this occur?"9. "Where specifically did it occur?"10. "Exactly what immediately preceded the

behavior?"11. "Exactly what activity was the youth involved

in?"12. "How did you react to this behavior?"13. "How does this behavior make you feel?"

• As a general rule, whenever you receive a vague answer to one of these questions, follow it up with a more specific question. For example, if you asked, "When did this happen?" and received the answer, "Yesterday," you should follow this with the question, "What time yesterday?" In addition, after one problem behavior has been described, ask if there is another one to be discussed. Here is a fictitious example of a discussion between a Family Teacher and a natural parent who is troubled by a problem:

• Family Teacher: "What seems to be the problem, Mrs. Jones?"

• Parent: "Karen just doesn't obey me.' (Vague answer)• FT: "I'm sorry to hear that. How does she not obey

you?" Parent: "She always comes home late from her dates." FT: "She comes home late from dates? How late is she?"

• Parent: "She is supposed to be home at 12 midnight, and she is usually an hour to two hours late."

• FT: "I'm glad you're telling me about this. How often does she come in late?"

• Parent: "Every night that she's home." FT: "How long has she been doing this?" Parent: "Oh, just the last two weeks."

• FT: "So this happens on Friday and Saturday nights when she's home with you?"

• Parent: "Yes, and sometimes when she's staying at her aunt's."

• FT: "Is there any particular person that she's dating that might be connected with the problem?"

• Parent: "Yes, she just started dating this Bob Dolan two weeks ago."

• FT: "This must be very bothersome to you."• Parent: "Yes, I stay up and wait until she gets

home. I get very angry.“

• FT: "What does she say when she comes home late?"

• Parent: "Well, she says that I shouldn't wait up for her and that I should mind my own business."

• FT: "Have you done anything else besides confront her at these times?"

• Parent: "Yes, I talk to her about it and tell her why it's important to be home on time. I also take away her next weekend's allowance, but that doesn't seem to do any good. Her boyfriend has plenty of money."

• FT: "Well, I'm certainly glad that you've told me about this problem, Mrs. Jones, and I'm going to see what I can do to help you solve it... Are there any other problems you're having with Karen?“

The more specific her answers to your questions are, the more information you will have to set up a program to solve the problem.

Components of a Description

• In your behavioral description, there are certain components of the behavior that should be included. These components will differ according to various behavior categories. The following is a list of various categories of behavior and the components that you should include in your description of this behavior:

1. Verbal Behavior: The most desirable method of describing what a person has said is to Quote him/her exactly. In this way no one can falsely interpret your description.

2. Voice Tone: Since there is no behavioral method to describe a person's voice tone, one has to rely on adjectives and adverbs for description. Two dimensions of voice tone should be described: "mood" - sarcastic, excited, happy, pleasant, etc.; and voice "quality" loud, soft, harsh, clear, inaudible, etc.

3. Verbal Type: Many times you will want to describe verbal behaviors such as yelling, teasing, interrupting, screaming, etc. Using one of the above words alone is not sufficient since each could be interpreted in many ways. The best way to describe a verbal type is to mention the verbal type - he yelled, he teased, and clarify it further by stating what was said or at least summarize what was said - he yelled to Greg to get off the phone.

4. Maintenance and Self Care Behaviors: In your descriptions relating to this category, you should try to include a measure of the final product of the behavior as well as breaking down the behavior in its component parts (i.e., he cleaned his face so that no dirt was visible anywhere; he did an incomplete job of washing the dishes, leaving the dishes wet and on the sink; he did a poor job washing his ears, but cleaned the rest of this face well). A measure of the ongoing behavior is important also (i.e., he brushes his teeth with up and down strokes for three minutes).

5. Action Behaviors: In describing behaviors such as fighting, running, following instructions, etc., it is important that you include the following dimensions. The behavior should be put in context by mentioning who was involved and where it took place. A dimension of magnitude should be included (ran fast, responded immediately, etc.) as well as a description of how the behavior occurred (ran through room, threw ball to Tobie across room, etc.)

6. Existing Conditions: This refers to ongoing conditions, such as a person's attitude, where things are located, something happening at the time (radio playing, etc.). Again, you should use as many descriptive words as possible and specify dimensions of magnitude how loud, serious, etc.) and give examples of what you are referring to (i.e., bad attitude by not responding to the FT's questions, etc.).

7. Body Language: This refers to body posture and facial expressions. Here you should try to include specific components of behavior (eye contact, clenched teeth, slumped back, wide smile, etc.) as much as possible.

8. Describing Something Not Done: When you are describing something a person has forgotten to do, you should be as specific per appropriate category as you would be if you were describing the same behavior if it had been done.

9. In Context: In your descriptions of behavior be sure that your description is in context. Simply to say "Good eye contact: is not sufficient because when the eye contact was there is not specified. Sometimes the context is understood as in a situation when a specific behavior (broke a dish, said God damn it, etc.) only happened once. However, when the context is not clearly evident, be sure to include it in your description.

General Guidelines for Determining the Appropriateness and Inappropriateness of

Behavior

I. A behavior is generally appropriate when it:– is reinforcing to you, another adult or

the youth's peers,

– is an attempt by the youth to learn a new skill, such as learning maintenance tasks, academic tasks or social skills, or

– is an attempt to correct previous inappropriate behavior, an approximation to a more appropriatebehavior.

II. A behavior is generally inappropriate when it:

– conflicts with rules of society (laws, social codes, etc.),

– conflicts with rules of the home,.

– puts the reputation of the home in danger,

– is an aggressive or extreme emotional reaction, or

– is anything that your common sense tells you is wrong.

III. Common appropriate areas of behavior should be listed or reinforced:

• Good eye contact:– Youth is looking at you during an interaction.

• Obeying instructions:– A youth comes when the FT calls him/her or does

what he/she is told without delay.• Pleasant attitudes:

– Smiles, responds enthusiastically, does something an FLT requests in a pleasant manner without frowns, sighs or arguments.

• Politeness:– Answers door, phone, or introduces someone, etc,

in a polite way with good manners, appropriate verbal and pleasant facial expressions.

– Initiates interactions with other youth, FT, or guests.

• Putting things away where they belong. • Helping others:

– Helps another youth or FLT on a specific task.

• Cooperating: – Plays games with others without arguing.– Works together without conflict towards, a

specific goal.

• Kindness to animals. • Volunteering information:

– Is honest.– Reports, describes situations completely, etc.

• Control of emotional behavior:– During intense or conflicting situations.

• Terminating conflicts:– Helps to stop a fight, suggests alternatives.

• Correct maintenance and self care behavior:– Follows maintenance and self care guidelines.

• Following house rules.

IV. Common Inappropriate Areas of Behavior• No eye contact:

– Doesn't look at the FLT during an interaction.• Poor posture:

– Slouches, head down, etc. during situations when good posture is called for, i.e. interactions, mealtimes, etc.

• Not obeying instructions:– Doesn't come, hesitates when called or when

asked to do something.

• Unpleasant attitudes:– Frowns, sighs, groans, etc. in response to FT. – Sulks, pouts, doesn't smile, doesn't respond to FT.

• Being rude:– Bad manners when answering door or phone, i.e., no smiles,

poor posture, harsh verbal, etc.– Doesn't respond when spoken to.

• Ignoring situations where help is needed:– Doesn't help another youth or FT when help is called for

whether specifically asked for or not.• Arguing:

– Excessively uncooperative behavior without reaching agreement.

– Disorderly verbal disagreement.• Fighting:

– Combination of verbal disagreement and physical force or threat of physical force that would cause injury.

– Shoving, pushing, tripping, slapping, kicking, throwing objects, etc.

• Unkindness to animals:– Use of physical force that could cause injury.

• Dishonesty:– Holds back information when asked or when it is

expected.– Makes untrue statements with the intent to deceive.

• Uncontrolled emotional behavior:– Yells, screams.– Stomps, waves arms, throws things, distorts face, etc.

in an aggressive manner.• Incorrect maintenance and self care behavior:

– Doesn't follow correct maintenance and self careguidelines set down by FT’s.

• Cussing.• Interrupting:

– Enters into a conversation with questions orstatements while another person is speaking.

Observing and Describing First Hand Behavior

I. Behavioral ChecklistWhile looking at the tapes, attend to the followingbehaviors exhibited by the youths:– Body Posture: The position of the body while he/she

sits, moves or does things.– Facial Expressions: Eye contact, frowns, smiles,

expression of anger, etc.– What Is Happening In the Situation: The ongoing

description of the series of events and of the task (s) accomplished. For example: The FT gave Sara an instruction, Sara turned away, she cursed and cleared the table...etc.

– The Frequency of the Behavior: How often is the youth late, how frequently does she/he volunteer for jobs, how frequently does he/she smile?

– The Magnitude of the Behavior: How many minutes is the youth late, how seriously did engaging in a specific behavior affect the youth's welfare as well as the welfare of others?

II. Reminders to Help You Observe Behaviors and to Describe It to Yourself:– When describing the youth's behavior, avoid using

emotional terms and general terms such as "moody," "neurotic," "disrespectful," "immature," "poor attitude," or "poor posture." Be specific instead and describe "poor posture," for example, as being "rounded shoulders, curved back and head down."

– Remember and describe the situation surrounding and leading up to the behavior. This way you will be able to identify the event(s) that facilitated the occurrence of a behavior, and, if negative, you will be able to help a youth respond more appropriately once he/she finds him/herself in a similar situation. For example, you have noticed that every time Pete asks Tom "How was school today?" Tom says, "It's none of your business" and then turns away. In order to help Tom with his problem behavior, you will want to be able to specify to him what the behavior is, and also that it usually occurs when Pete asks him "how school was," or a situation that leads up to the behavior.

– When observing a youth, make every effort to focus also on the positive aspects of his/her behavior even if the behavior is mostly inappropriate. For example, if Lisa doesn't respond once you give her an instruction and she doesn't look at you, make sure to notice also that she did not leave when you were talking to her (positive aspect) and that she came when you called her (positive aspect), so that you will be able to point it out to her along with a description of the. negative behaviors. This way you will be able to let her know what she is doing correctly and you will not offend her.

Obtaining Second Hand information

III. What You Should find Out:– (The problem) What the Problem

Behaviors Are: What the youth does that gets him/her into trouble, such as not following instructions, always being late, talking back, cursing, fighting with peers, etc.

– (Where it occurs) Where the Problem Behavior Occurs: In the natural home, at school, over at grandparent's, etc.

– (When it occurs) When the Problem Behavior Occurs: On Fridays, during

dinner, during the math class, etc.

– (The circumstances) Under What Circumstances Does the Problem Behavior Occur: Whenever the gym teacher calls her/him, when mother gives her/him an instruction, etc.

– (Rate of occurrences) What Is the Rate of Occurrence: Usually one night a week, four times an hour, etc.

– (Seriousness) What Is the Magnitude of Behavior: She/he is usually one to two hours late, she/he usually disrupts the class so that no one can get anything done, he/she gave his/her sister a bruise.

– (Attempts to solve the problem) What Has Been done About the Problem: We talked to him/her about it, we send him/her to the principal's office, etc.

– (Effects on others) What Effect Does the Problem Behavior Have On the Observer( s), i.e., Parents, Teachers, etc.: It makes us angry, we worry about it, I am offended by it, it disrupts my teaching.

Why is it important to observe and describe

behaviors• Aids in teaching

youth:– Makes youth aware

of specific inappropriate and appropriate behaviors

– Helps youth understand exactly what is expected. Increases likelihood of future success

– Lessens the chance of arguments and misunderstandings

• Aids in building relationships:– By describing

strictly behaviors and avoiding judgmental terms, youth will view you as concerned and be more receptive to teaching

– Studies how youth prefer being told exactly how and what to do and youth relate specific positive feedback as important

Observing and Defining Behaviors

• A– Activity of person?– When? Time of day, before a

meal, before bed, in the morning, etc.

– Where? At home, at school, at Grandma’s, etc.

– Preceding conditions? Watching TV, playing with siblings, etc.


• B– Body movements? Walking

around, clenching fists, jiggling foot, etc.

– Facial expressions? Smiling, frowning, looking away, rolling eyes, etc.

– Verbalizations? How loud, swearing, abbreviations, etc.

– Intensity? How long, how often, etc.


• C– Rein forcers maintaining behavior– Consequences decreasing

behavior– Response of others?– Task completed?

When a problem exists and you want to correct it

When something is right and you want to provide praise

and support for that behavior

When you are watching a youth practice a new skill

When making behavioral descriptions

• Be specific• Word it so it could be repeated by

someone who had not originally observed it

• Avoid using only general terms like” bad attitude,” “poor posture,” etc.

• Demonstrate voice tone• Quote exactly• Describe body language• Describe absence of behaviors that

would have been appropriate


Pre-Service Workshop

This training presentation is available for download at:www.utahparenting.org

© 2007 Utah Youth Village.

observing and describing behavior pre-service workshop

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