Please note: this article makes reference to settings in Australia but the content is relevant for practitioners globally.
For many organisations, the phrase ‘behaviour management’ still appears in policies, professional conversations, and support plans. But increasingly, practitioners are recognising that what they are really aiming for is something quite different: behaviour support.
At first glance, the two terms might seem interchangeable but in practice, they reflect different ways of thinking. One asks, “How do we stop this behaviour?” The other asks, “What is this person trying to tell us?” And that shift in thinking can have a significant impact on staff teams and the individuals we support.
What is behaviour management?
Whether someone is feeling overwhelmed, anxious, frustrated, distressed, or simply unable to communicate what they need, they sometimes express how they feel in their behaviour.
Behaviour management traditionally concentrates on reacting to these behaviours when they happen. The aim is often to reduce or eliminate behaviours through promoting compliance, using strategies such as setting rules, applying sanctions or consequences, or offering rewards.
These approaches may help in the moment, particularly when safety is a priority. But they don’t always explain why the behaviour happened in the first place. Without that understanding, the same behaviour can often return, making long-term change difficult to effect.
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