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Chronic disruptive behavior is complicated and complex. There are many moving parts. We can easily become confused, annoyed, frustrated, and exhausted as we attempt to address maladaptive behavior. It’s challenging to know where and how to start addressing behavior of students like Joshua. 

In the spirit of keeping complex things simple, I want to introduce the behavior formula. This is the best place to start addressing chronic disruptive behavior. Applying this formula will yield a ton of insight before you jump into strategies. This formula provides insight into what is driving behavior. It helps us get to the root of what’s causing behavior (remember, fruit comes from the root). 

The Behavior Formula 

In his book, The Catalyst – How to Change Anyone’s Mind, Jonah Berger writes about a colossal problem Procter & Gamble had in 2018 called The Tide Pod Challenge.

Berger explains that after decades of work, Procter & Gamble created an easy way for consumers to add detergent to their wash without the mess of measuring the exact amount of detergent needed. All consumers had to do was pull a small self-encased bubble from a box and toss it into the wash machine. The plastic would dissolve in water, releasing the detergent only when needed. It was simple and easy.

Procter & Gamble called them Tide Pods. The company had invested millions of dollars into research, development, and marketing.

There was one huge problem: Teenagers were eating them. 

Berger explains that the Tide Pod Challenge started as a joke. However, what started as a joke grew into social media frenzy where tweens and teens were challenging others to eat the Tide Pods. Teenagers would record themselves chewing and gagging on the pods and post the videos on social media, daring others to do the same. 

As a way to manage the crisis and the company’s brand, Procter & Gamble did what many companies would do in this situation. They told teenagers to stop eating the Tide Pods. 

Berger explains that Procter & Gamble even enlisted celebrity football player Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski to warn not to eat the pods.

The strategy of telling kids to stop eating the Tide Pods didn’t work. It got worse.

Shortly after Gronk warned not to eat the Tide Pods, Google searches for Tide Pods spiked to their highest level. Within a few days they had more than doubled. Within a week, they were up almost 700%! Visits and calls to poison control centers shot up as well. 

I don’t know about you, but the Tide Pod Challenge seems crazy to me. I can’t fathom why anyone would think it’s a good idea to eat something filled with alcohol ethoxy sulfate and propylene glycol!

The behavior formula provides some clues. It’s a structure and format to help us make sense of human behavior and why people choose to behave crazy, like eating Tide Pods, even though they’ve been warned about the danger and know it’s dangerous. 

B = f(T/E). Behavior = function (Thinking/Experiences) 

In the formula, B represents all behavior we see and hear from a student. Both adaptive and maladaptive. Both good and bad. Both positive and negative. ALL behavior—yes, including eating Tide Pods. 

The f represents the function of behavior. You’ll figure out what function may be driving the behavior when you consider what the student is trying to get or get away from. 

For example, a student may be blurting out because the student wants attention (a.k.a., negative attention-seeking behavior). Attention is the function. Or a student may constantly argue with the teacher during a time when they should be working on the writing assignment. The student is trying to get away from or escape the writing assignment; therefore, escape is the function. 

The reason that Procter & Gamble’s warning “Do not to eat the Tide Pods” backfired was the behavioral function of power and control at play.

People do what they do because they want what they want. 

Telling people not to do something has the opposite effect: it makes them more likely to do it. Telling a teenager not to date someone doesn’t make the teen listen to you. It somehow makes that person more attractive and alluring to the teen. Telling people they shouldn’t text and drive at the same time doesn’t stop people from texting while driving. Why? Because people like control over their lives. Even if the behavior they choose is not good for them. They revel in the power of being the ones in control of making their own decisions regardless of the outcome.

The T represents thinking patterns. People have either adaptive or maladaptive patterns of thinking. Adaptive thinking patterns usually manifest into adaptive behavior. Students who meet classroom expectations, cooperate with others, treat others respectfully, and complete their assignments are students who have adaptive thinking patterns. 

On the other hand, maladaptive thinking patterns usually manifest into maladaptive behavior. Students who have maladaptive thinking patterns become oppositional and defiant, argue with people, refuse to cooperate, and blame others when demands are placed upon them.

I call these “stinking thinking” patterns.

I’m not sure which maladaptive thinking patterns were at play inside the heads of people who took the Tide Pod challenge, but there was some “stinking thinking” going on for sure. 

What I do know is that people like to feel they have control over their choices and actions. That they have the freedom to drive their own behavior. When others threaten or restrict that freedom, people get upset. Being told they can’t or shouldn’t do something interferes with their autonomy. 

So, they push back. “Who are you to tell me I shouldn’t eat laundry detergent? I can do whatever I want!” 

It’s important to consider the underlying thinking patterns of a student as thinking patterns influence the function, and the function will manifest into a behavior. When people in the Tide Pod Challenge thought their autonomy and agency were being threatened, the function of power and control kicked in and manifested in some crazy and dangerous behavior. 

The E represents experiences. You may have heard the old saying, “We are a product of our environment.” The experiences we have in life shape our attitude, behavior, and character. Consider some of the key experiences the student is exposed to at home, at school, with peers, and with social media. These experiences influence thinking patterns. 

The social media “buzz” surrounding the Tide Pod Challenge was such a powerful experience for people, it influenced thinking patterns to a point that people thought it was okay to eat laundry detergent. Wow! 

Now, read the formula backwards: (E/T)f = B

Experiences influence our Thinking patterns.

Thinking patterns influence the function. 

function manifests into Behavior.

There is a relationship between these elements. Changing a student’s behavior starts with changing the experiences they have. Changing experiences a student has while at school can nudge a change in the student’s thinking patterns. A change in the student’s thinking patterns can nudge a change of the function. A change of function can lead to a change in behavior. 

This is the place to start. It’s a simple formula that guides us through the complexities of maladaptive behavior. It’s not perfect, but the formula provides a working space for hypothesizing factors that may be driving behavior. 

In short, using this formula keeps us from spraying and praying. It keeps us from stepping into the behaviors without first stepping back to take perspective and gain insight.

Behavior – B = f(T/E) 

Let’s consider the situation with Joshua in Mrs. Snyder’s fifth grade classroom. Mrs. Snyder reported that Joshua refused to follow directions and shouted profanities. He tore his worksheets into pieces and drew pictures of guns. Allegedly, Joshua stole Pokémon cards, argued about the incident, and cast blame on another student for trying to steal the cards from him. During instruction, Joshua interrupted by talking loudly over Mrs. Snyder with offensive and rude comments. He bolted out of the classroom, hid in the hallway bathroom, and refused to come out when Mrs. Snyder found him. At recess, Joshua became angry and punched another student. 

These behaviors are the B in the formula. The fruit. 

The next steps in the formula involve getting to the root. The root cause. The steps include hypothesizing and proving what functions of behavior are being activated (and why), exploring what patterns of maladaptive thinking Joshua may have that are driving functions, and considering what experiences in the classroom need to be created that will nudge and promote a change in Joshua’s thinking patterns. 

Functions of Behavior – B = f(T/E)

Thinking patterns influence the function. Behavior is manifested from...