Assessment and treatment of problem behavior maintained by escape from attention

Two children who acted out to get away from people took part.

The team first checked that the kids’ problem behavior only happened when adults walked away.

Next they taught each child a simple way to ask for a break.

Then they slowly made the social break shorter and the play time longer.

Problem behavior dropped and stayed low for both kids.

The children also started to stay and chat for longer periods.

FCT plus the slow fade worked when escape from attention was the only reason for the behavior.

Hastings et al. (2001) did the same check 21 years earlier. They saw that some kids escape attention and also want toys. They used FCT but did not fade the social time. Cengher adds the graduated-exposure step for cases with a single escape function.

Greer et al. (2016) looked at 25 FCT cases. They used clear signals to thin the schedule. Cengher keeps the thinning idea but swaps the signals for longer and longer play periods.

Ramirez et al. (2025) tried an instant lean schedule after FCT. Two of three kids did fine; one needed a slower fade. Cengher starts with the slow fade from the start, matching the backup plan Ramirez used.

If your client hits or runs when people come near, run a quick FA. If the behavior only drops when you leave, teach a break mand. Then stretch the interaction bit by bit. Start with ten seconds, then twenty, then a minute. You keep problem behavior low while building tolerance to social time. No extra staff, no toys needed.