The purpose of this paper is to provide a commentary on Chan and Baker’s article on the social validity of the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) by exploring some of the advantages and limitations of this and similar tools designed to classify challenging behaviour.
The clinical use of the ABC and similar measures is discussed and contrasted with function-based approaches to assessment.
While classification tools such as the ABC have played an important role in developing the understanding of challenging behaviour, they focus exclusively on the individual exhibiting the behaviour and fail to take into consideration the context in which the behaviour occurs.
Considering behaviour in its social and environmental context can reduce the blame and stigma associated with challenging behaviour.
