Behavior Chain Analysis
Why did I say that?
Why did I act like that?
Why did I go from 0 to 100 real quick?
I don’t know you but I assume you’ve played this 20 Questions game with yourself at some point in your life. It’s an endless game really. Big, suffocating questions can start with why. It can be overwhelming to sit with why, right? Let’s change the question.
Let’s play a different game.
What happened when I said that?
How come I acted like that?
How did I go from 0 to 100?
What is a Behavior Chain?
A Behavior Chain is a tool we can use to understand and analyze problematic behaviors. It's a step-by-step breakdown of events, thoughts, and feelings that lead up to a specific behavior. These “problematic” are behaviors you want to intentionally target for change.
Think of it as a series of dominoes lined up. When one falls, it triggers the next, and so on until the final domino topples over. In this analogy, the final domino falling represents the target behavior you’re looking at. The goal of a behavior chain analysis is to identify each "domino" in the sequence and figure out where you can intervene to prevent the unwanted behavior from happening again. Then you can start to identify patterns and potential links in the chain where you could make different choices or use DBT skills to change the outcome.
The purpose of this analysis isn't to blame yourself! I’ll repeat it again for the people in the back. This tool isn’t about placing blame. Its purpose is to help us gain a better understanding of our behaviors. What happened before I said that? Before I acted like that? Understanding what led up to the behavior can help us develop new strategies to break the chain and replace problematic behaviors with more effective ones.
For example, the following depicts a step by step breakdown of how a chain work:
The Promotion
What is the prompting event?
On Friday, I found out that Lydia Mae, my coworker, got assigned as project head over me.
What is the target behavior?
I made a snarky comment, “Must be nice to be close friends with the boss.”
Here’s the chain:
Thought: "This isn't fair."
Feeling: Anger
Thought: "I work harder than them."
Physical sensation: Constricted chest
Feeling: inferior —> angry
Thought: “Why don’t they see that I’ve been working hard and better suited for the role”
Feeling: disappointment
Physical sensation: my face feels hot and my heart is racing
Action: I decline to have lunch with the team, saying I have work to catch up on and will eat later
Action: I sat at my desk mindlessly looking at my computer. I lost the energy to put any effort into my work.
Action: I said, “Must be nice to be close friends with the boss.” When they came back.
Breaking the Chain
This is where the transformation begins. You've identified what happened, but the crucial question is: what do you do next?
Mindfulness skills are your first line of defense. They allow you to observe your thoughts and emotions without getting caught up in them. For instance, the thought "This isn't fair" can be reframed as "I am having the thought that this isn't fair." This subtle shift creates a powerful distance between you and your thoughts.
When physical symptoms of distress kick in - like a constricted chest, flushed face, or racing heart - it's time to employ distress tolerance skills. The STOP skill is particularly effective here. It gives you permission to pause, step away from the situation, and take care of yourself. Something as simple as excusing yourself to the restroom and splashing cold water on your face can be remarkably grounding.
The key to breaking the behavior chain is developing an awareness of when you can intervene. It can feel like things escalate from 1 to 100; what actually happens is a hundred other things before we reach our max.
When completing a chain it’s also crucial to look at vulnerability factors and the aftereffects of the target behavior. Vulnerability factors are situations or conditions that make a person more likely to struggle with their emotions and behave in unhelpful ways (i.e. skipping lunch). The aftermath of the behavior looks at both positive and negative consequences which give us insight into how the behavior is reinforced or can be discouraged in future situations. It’s challenging to complete a behavior chain. You don’t have to do it alone!
Final Thoughts
Toni Morrison's wisdom from "The Bluest Eye" resonates here: "There is really nothing more to say—except why. But since why is difficult to handle, one must take refuge in how." This wisdom encourages us to shift our focus from the often elusive "why" to the more tangible "how," allowing us to find solace in understanding the mechanics of our experiences. By recognizing that everything has a cause and exploring the chain of cause and effect, we can discover a form of freedom—freedom to choose our skills more effectively and freedom from the paralyzing question of "why." A behavior chain houses our refuge in ‘how’, empowering us to navigate our past experiences with greater clarity and use that knowledge to shape our future choices.
Reference
Linehan, M. M. (2015). DBT® skills training manual (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.