Functional Communication Training (clinical applications)

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DR. WAYNE W. FISHER: I will be talking today about the treatment of problem behavior using functional communication training. Functional communication training is one of a number of function-based treatments. Function-based treatments are ones that try to understand and treat problem behavior in its environmental context, and to explain that I have a little story I like to tell.

There was a man walking in the woods, and he came upon this object, picked it up, started rubbing it, and it turned out to be a bottle. And a genie pops out of the bottle and says, I've been stuck in that bottle for 3,000 years. And for your reward for releasing me, I will grant you any three requests you want.

So the guy thought long and hard, and he said, well, you know, my health's been kind of bad. My heart's bad. My knees are bad. I feel pain all the time. I can't seem to get up enough energy to do things. It would be kind of nice to feel good for a change.

And the genie goes, poof, your wish is granted. What's your second wish? And the man thought long and hard again. And he said, well, you know, I've always been really poor. I've never had any money, never been able to do things, never been able to travel or buy things that I wanted. It would be nice to have a little bit of money.

And the genie goes, poof, your second wish is granted. What's your third wish? And now the guy was down to one wish, and he really, really thought for a long time. And he finally said, well, you know, it would be really nice if my sex life would improve. And so the genie goes, poof, your third wish is granted.