Is it time to drop the term ‘challenging behaviour’?
Jeffrey Chan Chief practitioner disability and director of forensic disability, Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services, Brisbane QLD at Sydney University, NSW
Samuel Arnold Research fellow, Centre for Disability Studies at Sydney University, NSW
Lynne Webber Acting manager and clinical associate professor, Office of the Senior Practitioner, Department of Human Services and School of Psychology, Deakin University, Melbourne VIC at Sydney University, NSW
Vivienne Riches Senior research fellow, Centre for Disability Studies at Sydney University, NSW
Trevor Parmenter Emeritus professor, Sydney School of Medicine at Sydney University, NSW
Roger Stancliffe Professor of intellectual disability, Faculty of Health Sciences at Sydney University, NSW
Jeffrey Chan and colleagues advocate adoption of the phrase ‘behaviour of concern’ to highlight the proper response of support staff to people with learning disabilities
‘Challenging behaviour’ is often associated with a crisis-driven approach to service delivery in which behaviours are assumed to be inherent in the people who exhibit them. Because this approach can lead to labelling, stereotyping and diagnostic overshadowing, the authors of this article argue that the term ‘challenging behaviour’ should be replaced with ‘behaviour of concern’ to highlight the ideal response of support staff rather than the challenge they must overcome.
Learning Disability Practice.
15, 5, 36-38.
doi: 10.7748/ldp2012.06.15.5.36.c9131
Correspondence
jeffrey.chan@communities.qld.gov.au
Peer review
This article has been subject to double blind peer review
Conflict of interest
None declared
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