ABSTRACT
This chapter describes appropriate behaviour occurs more often and with greater success than the behaviour that has been identified as problematic. This means ensuring that the appropriate behaviour achieves powerful reinforcement and ensuring that the inappropriate behaviour does not achieve reinforcement. Once a relevant new skill has been taught there is no guarantee that this skill will automatically replace the problematic or inappropriate behaviour or that it will be used in a way which prevents the problematic behaviour occurring. Teaching a new skill is one thing; getting the person to use it appropriately, in a way that directly impacts upon the problematic behaviour is another. Ensuring that the environment provides appropriate opportunities for the individual to show the skills that a person has is an obvious but not always carefully considered intervention. The situations in which materials are made available need to be ones where prompts can be provided in order to teach the person to use appropriate alternative skills.
