Behaviour change is often a desired outcome for carers and professionals who
work with people with learning disabilities and challenging behaviours. Managing
these behaviours in the short term is an important step towards this goal. This single case study presents the use of a low arousal approach in managing
challenging behaviours in a young man labelled with severe challenging
behaviour. This strategy focuses on the interaction of the carers with the client
and how their approach has an important impact on the behaviour of the client. The
study documents the incidents of challenging behaviour and shows a decline
in their frequency from baseline over a one-year period. These gains were
maintained at five-month follow-up. The implications for services of these
findings are discussed.