Behaviour Analysts recommend that parents who are struggling with their child’s behaviour should keep a record of the behaviour:
The Main Things To Include When Keeping A Record Are As Follows:
• What the child was doing before the behaviour occurred.
• What the behaviour looked like.
• What the consequences of the behaviour were.
It can also be beneficial to make note of what day it was, the time it happened, who was present, etc.
Any type of behaviour challenge can be recorded in this way, such as when a child has difficulty managing anger & tantrums, or displays attention-seeking/connection-seeking behaviour, sibling rivalry, etc.
Behaviour Therapists highlight how parents often find that they are so involved in a situation that they can’t see what is causing a behaviour or what is maintaining the behaviour. Studies in the field of Behaviour Analysis show that when a record of the behaviour is kept that includes the information above, it allows parents to identify patterns in the behaviour such as that the behaviour tends to happen for example:
– On certain days (perhaps the weekend when there is less structure).
– At certain times of the day (maybe straight after school or the hour before bed when the child is tired).
– Around certain people (Perhaps Mum tends to give in more easily than Dad so the behaviour tends to happen more around Mum).
– Perhaps each time the behaviour happens, the child gets what they want or avoids what they are trying to get out of doing.
– Etc.
Child Therapists note that the more accurate the record of behaviour kept, the more likely it will be that you will be able to identify patterns of behaviour. It can be extremely enlightening & once you know what is causing the behaviour & what is keeping the behaviour going, then you are in a good place to begin addressing the behaviour & in turn this makes parenting a lot easier.
