Parent-Professional Partnership in Behavioral Support: A Qualitative Analysis of One Family's Experience

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Abstract
Behavioral support with families is a multifaceted endeavor that should be studied from the various perspectives that affect its feasibility, efficacy, and potential to produce outcomes that are durable and meaningful to people's lives. This study describes a qualitative analysis of one family's experience during a 10-month process of assessment and intervention for the behavioral challenges of a boy with multiple and severe disabilities. Data collection included an audiojournal recorded by the boy's mother and a series of semistructured interviews with both parents and the boy's older brother. The data were synthesized to chronicle the impressions of the family relating to the phases of the positive behavioral support process. The data yielded two pervasive themes that describe the impact of the problem behavior on the family and the effects of the behavioral support process on the child and his family. Together, with a companion article that presents the procedures and quantitative analyses (Vaughn et al., 1997), the methods and findings from this study offer a broader view of behavioral support than has been evident in the literature thus far. The findings are presented as a heuristic for researchers to engage in participatory investigations that can illuminate important features of support processes with the intention of increasing responsiveness to consumers (e.g., families) and enhancing the benefits of community-based support efforts.

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