Consequences

Consequences are the events, actions, interactions, or outcomes that occur immediately after the Target Behavior. Identifying consistent consequence patterns helps teams understand what may be maintaining the Target Behavior and contributes to identifying the hypothesized function(s) of the behavior and the adjustment of staff responses in the BIP.

Select one or more consequences from the inventory within each applicable category. Use Consequences Details to summarize important patterns or provide additional context not captured by the selected inventory items.

Consequence categories include:

• Obtains Something Consequences – Outcomes in which the student gains or accesses something following the Target Behavior, such as adult attention, peer attention, preferred activities, preferred items, or sensory stimulation.
• Escapes or Avoids Something Consequences – Outcomes in which demands, activities, interactions, or other situations are delayed, reduced, or removed following the Target Behavior.
• Sensory or Physiological Consequences – Outcomes involving internal sensory stimulation, pain reduction, comfort, or other physiological experiences that may maintain the behavior.
• Discipline or Emergency Interventions Consequences – Responses such as office referrals, suspension, physical restraint, seclusion, or other disciplinary or emergency procedures that commonly follow the Target Behavior.

Examples:

• Following disruptive behavior during math, classmates laugh and begin interacting with Taylor. A consequence to select may be Peer Attention under Obtains Something Consequences.
• When asked to participate in a class discussion, Monica puts her head down, covers her ears, and avoids participating. The teacher moves on to another student. A consequence to select may be Activity Avoided or Removed under Escapes or Avoids Something Consequences.

Tip: Focus on identifying consistent consequence patterns based on observations, interviews, record reviews, and other assessment procedures rather than isolated incidents.

Consequences Details

Each consequence category includes a Consequences Details field for documenting patterns or additional context that may not be fully captured by the selected inventory items.

Example: Staff frequently provide one-on-one assistance following work refusal. When work demands are temporarily removed and individualized support is provided, the student typically returns to work within several minutes.

Custom Consequences

If a consequence is not available within the inventory, click Add Custom Consequence to create your own. Enter the custom consequence, select the appropriate category, and click Create. Custom consequences can be selected and edited just like inventory items.

Note: Any consequence categories left blank will not appear in the FBA Report.