Association for Behavior Analysis International

Presenting Author: Dr. Cody Morris

At ABAI's 2026 Behavior Technician Conference in February 2026, Dr. Cody Morris presented The Constructional Approach to Challenging and Disruptive Behaviors. Approximately 12.5% of individuals with developmental disabilities engage in challenging and disruptive behaviors, such as aggression and self-injurious behavior, that put themselves or others at risk of harm. In particular, engaging in these challenging and disruptive behaviors puts individuals with developmental disabilities at higher risk of losing access to educational opportunities, visiting emergency departments in hospitals for non-medical emergencies, and living in restrictive settings. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) has decades of research demonstrating its effectiveness in assessing and treating severe behaviors in individuals with developmental disabilities and other disorders. One reason for the success that ABA has had in helping individuals address their challenging and disruptive behaviors is that many ABA practitioners assume a constructional approach to the treatment that prioritizes skill development as the foundation of any treatment. This talk will explain the constructional approach and discuss how it can be applied to treat challenging and disruptive behavior.

Instruction Level: Basic

Target Audience: RBTs and other direct care staff

Learning Objectives:

1. Participants will be able to describe the impact of challenging and disruptive behaviors that are left untreated.
2. Participants will be able to explain the constructional approach.
3. Participants will be able to identify ways in which the constructional approach can be applied in diverse clinical contexts.