Psychology/Behavior/Environment before person
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Behavior
Environment before person
Many patterns that look like a person turn out to be a room, a timetable or a queue. Completing the environment fields first is the single highest-yield habit in applied behavioural work.
Six dimensions to record
| Dimension | What to record |
|---|---|
| Physical | Room size, seating, exits, clutter, whether the person has any space of their own. |
| Sensory | Noise type and level, lighting, echo, smells, temperature, screens, movement in peripheral vision. |
| Social | Number of people, who is present, group size, who leads, familiar or unfamiliar faces. |
| Temporal | Time of day, position in the routine, time since food, time since sleep, time until a known transition. |
| Demand | Task difficulty, task length, choice available, novelty, whether the end point is visible to the person. |
| Predictability | Was the sequence known in advance? Was there a change today? Was warning given, and how long before? |
Why two settings is the minimum
A single setting cannot distinguish a person from a place. If calling out occurs eleven times in the hall and once in the small classroom, the useful variable is not the person — it is whatever differs between the hall and the classroom. The two-setting comparison is the fastest way to find it, and it is also the fastest way to discover that a plan aimed at the person would have been aimed at the wrong thing.
| If the pattern appears… | What that supports |
|---|---|
| In both settings, at similar rates. | Something travelling with the person, or a condition present in both. |
| In one setting only. | Something in that setting. Compare noise, group size, predictability, channel, exit permission and task length before anything else. |
| In both, but at very different rates. | An interaction. The person and the setting are both contributing, and the setting is the part you can change this week. |
| Only when a particular person is present. | A relational or instructional variable — not necessarily a problem with either person. |
The attribution reflex
Humans reliably explain other people’s behaviour by their character and their own by their circumstances. Every observation form on this platform completes the environment fields before the behaviour fields for exactly that reason.
Seven environmental changes that are usually cheap
- A fixed warning before every transition, at a length the person confirms works.
- Every multi-step instruction given in writing or visually as well as aloud.
- A visible end point for each task — number of items, a timer, or a physical stopping marker.
- An agreed exit signal and a named quiet location, with permission that does not need re-negotiating each time.
- A stable pairing with one named peer instead of randomly formed groups.
- Ten seconds of silence after a question, without repeating it.
- Demanding tasks moved earlier in the day, with recovery time scheduled rather than earned.
PMA Support Profile One-Pager
The language that keeps a support record honest, the four questions that must precede any plan, and a one-page profile to complete with the person rather than about them. (5 pages, PDF)
Free download
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