The Performance-based IISCA Can Inform Effective and Socially Meaningful Skill-based Treatment
A quick performance check before the IISCA still finds the function and hands parents a plan that stops dangerous behavior cold.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Fruchtman and team tested a new twist on the IISCA. They call it the performance-based IISCA. It lets the child try the task first, then gives help only if problem behavior shows up.
Three autistic children with dangerous behavior took part. Each child got one short assessment. Then the team built a caregiver-led skill plan that matched the function they saw.
What they found
All three kids stopped dangerous behavior during the final treatment. They also learned to ask, wait, and follow directions. Parents said the plan was easy to use and felt fair.
How this fits with other research
Slaton et al. (2017) first showed that the IISCA beats the old isolated FA. The new study keeps the IISCA idea but adds a quick performance test before the full analysis. This small change keeps the speed while showing the child can already do the skill.
Baker et al. (2025) built a tool to rate behavior-plan quality. Fruchtman’s plans would likely score high on that tool because they list clear replacement skills and caregiver steps.
Hagopian et al. (2005) used a different single-case method to find response chains. Both papers aim to cut severe behavior, but Fruchtman moves straight to caregiver teaching instead of just blocking responses.
Why it matters
You can run the performance-based IISCA in under 30 minutes and hand the plan to parents the same day. No extra clinic visits. Try it with your next case who hits to escape work. Let the child touch the task first, then watch for the function. Build the skill set that matches what you saw and teach the parent to use it at home.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Jessel et al. (Behavior Analysis in Practice, 17, 727–745, 2024) demonstrated that results from the performance-based, interview-informed synthesized contingency analysis (IISCA) had strong correspondence when compared to typical IISCA procedures and produced positive outcomes with resultant functional communication training procedures. On the basis of the assumption that functional analyses may include potentially adverse events insofar as they deliberately and repeatedly arrange conditions suspected to evoke dangerous behavior, Jessel and colleagues argued in favor of aligning functional analysis procedures with guidelines of trauma-informed care. We replicated and extended Jessel et al. (Behavior Analysis in Practice, 17, 727–745, 2024) by conducting a performance-based IISCA with three children with autism referred for behavioral services due to dangerous behavior and by evaluating a comprehensive skill-based treatment informed by the performance-based IISCA. The skill-based treatment resulted in the eventual elimination of dangerous behavior and the acquisition of multiple important skills, with caregivers implementing treatment sessions for two of the three participants. Assessment and intervention procedures and outcomes were socially validated by all participating families.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2025 · doi:10.1007/s40617-024-01036-7