Antecedent interventions are strategies we develop to manipulate an environment prior to the occurrence of a behavior. These strategies are utilized to increase the likelihood of the desired behavior to occur and to decrease the occurrence of maladaptive behavior one might exhibit.
| Antecedent Intervention Strategy | Description | Example |
| Using preferred items or activities | Making the environment more desirable for your child | Use their favorite towel or bubble bath for bath time if there is tantrum behavior around bathing |
| Alter the environment | Changing a routine or schedule to elicit more desirable behaviors | -Allow for a few minutes of a break before starting homework
-If sitting next to a sibling causes issues during dinner change the seats at the table -Provide jobs that may present the opportunity to deliver positive reinforcement prior to a difficult time (i.e. setting the table) |
| Choice Making | Allow your child to choose between items in order to obtain desired behavior | We need to get dressed, do you want to put on your pants or shirt first? |
| Behavior momentum | Set up the environment so your child engages in skills they are successful with and lead in to more difficult ones | Pick up clothes, then get dressed and last make the bed |
| Transitional Warnings | Providing warnings for the termination of a preferred activity | 3 more minutes and then we are turning off the TV, 2 more minutes… |
| “Return to later” | Identify times of day your child can access desired activities | The TV is going off but if we clean our room and get ready for school we can watch it again at 7:30 |
| Priming | Previewing what is to come | Use a social story to talk about what to expect at the Dr’s office |
| Non-contingent Reinforcement | Catching your child being good | REINFORCE your child as often as possible just for being great! |
| Avoid presenting things as a question | Asking your child if he/she is ready to take a shower | After this show it is time for a shower OK? (this allows for your child to think it is a choice. If he or she says no you must honor that as you asked them if it was OK. |
| Be consistent | As often as possible remain consistent with your expectation. | When you say time for dinner 3 times one day and 10 times the next your child does not know when you mean business. |
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