Published on 12, July, 2020
Just wondering - has anybody here had any positive experiences of Positive Behaviour support (PBS). I've noticed it on the NAS website but wonder now whether the NAS needs to go a lot further and give much more detail on this topic.https://www.ingentaconnect.com/contentone/bild/ijpbs/2022/00000012/a00101s1/art00001?fbclid=IwAR13fWuCv-duwD_s7YLAbgx7a4kGrwZQbOe7eBEj2fEb8r9y8wOOgP7PdIMIt states that, "Of particular concern is the tendency to group together autism and learning disabilities" (something I find when I join groups locally and discover that many of the concerns are skewed towards learning disabilities rather than autism), plus, " It should be noted, however, that PBS as defined here, and int he past, is not intended for persons identifying as neurodivergent who do not have a learning disability".I'm left wondering why so many autism groups actively promote it. Or is it like ABA in that pratitioners will say, "Oh, our PBS is different. We don't do that and we're very respectful and person-centred".The NAS site says:https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/positive-behaviour-support-pbsbut I'm thinking we need more guidance on this.
Just to give a bit more detail, the brief course I'm doing is called "PBS for families and Carers" with a focus on understanding behaviour and developing support strategies. It's run by the local council's carers' group and, from the "kitemarks" at the top, supported by NHS Health Education England, the local CCG, Skills for People and Inclusion North. Given that it's for parents/carers, I should maybe have posted on that forum, but I'm coming to it from the perspective of a parent who's also autistic and wondering whether there are any autistic individuals out there whose families have adopted this approach, successfully or not.