Background. Intervention for challenging behaviour of residents living in c
are homes is a neglected area of research. Pharmacological methods of manag
ement are widespread, although support for their efficacy is, on the whole,
poor.
Aims. There is little research on non-pharmacological methods of management
and the present study aimed to add to the small literature in this area, b
y examining the meaning of behaviour for a given resident, within a functio
nal analytic experimental framework.
Methods. The study involved a systematic manipulation of specific trigger s
ituations to evaluate their influence on challenging behaviour, using a sin
gle case experimental design.
Results. Five residents with agitated and aggressive behaviour were success
fully managed. The difficulties in engaging staff in the use of non-pharmac
ological, rather than pharmacological, methods and the scope for future ran
domised trials using psychological and environmental interventions to manag
e challenging behaviour, are discussed. Copyright (C) 2001 John Wiley & Son
s, Ltd.