Variability in staff reports of the frequency of challenging behavior.
Staff daily logs of challenging behavior swing wildly, so confirm them with direct observation before you act.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Hastings et al. (2001) asked staff to record how often clients with developmental disabilities showed challenging behavior.
They compared the daily notes made by different staff on the same clients.
The goal was to see if the numbers matched or if they jumped around.
What they found
The counts were all over the place.
One staff member might write "10 hand-flaps" while another wrote "40" for the same client on the same day.
Stereotyped and fast behaviors showed the biggest swings.
How this fits with other research
Hogg et al. (1995) already showed staff feel sad, mad, and stressed when clients act out.
Hastings et al. (2001) add that these feelings may feed into shaky numbers.
Lambrechts et al. (2009) later found staff who feel more negative also log more challenging acts, backing the idea that mood colors data.
Eisenhower et al. (2006) tried to link staff thoughts to real actions, but the fit was weak, just as P et al. warn that paper tallies can mislead.
Why it matters
If you write behavior goals from staff logs alone, you may pick the wrong target or miss real trends.
Use brief direct counts, partial-interval sampling, or video spot checks to double-check staff data.
Train teams to define each behavior the same way and have two people score a sample each week.
Better numbers mean better graphs, better meetings, and faster help for clients.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Information was collected from 88 staff about their observations of the occurrence and frequency of challenging behaviors in 22 individuals with developmental disabilities with whom they worked. Staff reports suggested considerable variability in challenging behavior in the presence of different staff and, from day to day, in the presence of the same staff. Variability was greater for stereotyped than for aggressive/destructive behavior, and for more frequent behavior. Managers reported generally less challenging behavior than their staff. The validity of the findings was discussed and their implications for research and practice considered.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2001 · doi:10.1016/s0891-4222(01)00069-5