Get Functional Assessment Interview Tool (fait) For Staff

A functional assessment revealed that Billy engaged in vomiting when presented with difficult table/chair tasks (e.g., identifying letters and numbers). The vomiting was maintained by escaping from such tasks. The vomiting was twice as likely to occur when he slept fewer than 4 hours the night before.

The Functional Assessment Interview Form (FAI; O'Neill et al., 1997) is a semi-structured interview designed to gather information about a behavior and the circumstances under which it occurs.

Five main outcomes of a FAI: clear description of problem behaviors. Identify immediate antecedents. Identify ecological or setting events. Identify consequences for maintaining problem behaviors and potential functions. Summary statements.

An FBA starts by defining the student's behavior in a specific and objective way. For example, instead of saying the student is “defiant,” the team might say the student “rips up worksheets and doesn't respond when asked to show work in math class.”

Functional Assessment is a comprehensive evaluation of the physical and cognitive abilities required to maintain independence. Assessment tools provide objective measures of physical health, activities of daily living (ADLs), instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), and psychological and social functioning.

In a functional assessment, the purpose of an individual's behaviours is explored by collecting data specific to the individual, their relationships and their environments. Using this information, the specialist is able to develop appropriate teaching and/or intervention strategies that are specific to the individual.

By bringing your attention to the antecedents (things that happened before the behaviour) and the consequences (things that happen as a result of the behaviour) of the behaviour, the FAI helps you to identify not only the problem behaviour(s), but also the possible reasons for it.