PDC-HS: The FBA for Staff Performance Problems

The PDC-HS stands for Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services. It is an assessment for staff performance problems. It helps you find why a worker's behavior is not happening. It was built for settings like ABA, schools, and residential care.

This matters because supervision often stalls on guessing. When a staff member misses a step, we assume they forgot the training. The PDC-HS checks that assumption. It works like a functional assessment, but for adult behavior at work. This page shows what it does and how to use it.

An FBA for your staff#

BCBAs already trust the functional behavior assessment for clients. The PDC-HS brings that same logic to staff. It gathers information from an informant. That informant is usually the supervisor.

Dr. Tyra Sellers puts it plainly. It is an FBA aimed at ongoing performance issues.

It's basically an informant functional behavior assessment for persistent staff performance issues. And it's bomb. So use it. From the talk. Dr. Tyra Sellers

The framing is helpful. You would not treat a client behavior without knowing its function. The PDC-HS gives staff behavior that same respect. It moves you from blame to analysis.

When to reach for it#

Use the PDC-HS when the cause is not obvious. Simple gaps are easy to fix on the spot. But some staff behaviors keep failing for tangled reasons. Those cases need a structured look.

Matt Harrington recommends it for exactly those situations. It sorts through the many possible causes.

When you get into those complex reasons for behavior not occurring with our staff, I usually suggest things like the PDCHS... diagnostic checklist dash human services. From the talk. Matt Harrington

The tool is built for supervisors to complete. You answer questions about the supervisee and the setting. The pattern of answers points to a fix.

You fill it out for your supervisee, and that might clarify and help with some possible interventions for why that behavior is not occurring. From the talk. Matt Harrington

The domains it checks#

The PDC-HS looks past "they just need training." It scans several areas of the work environment. Each area is a possible reason the behavior fails. This structure keeps your thinking broad.

It checks training and skill first. Then it checks task clarity and process. It also checks resources, materials, and the setup of the job. Finally, it checks the consequences that follow performance.

An item scored "no" flags a likely barrier to fix. The domain with the most flags becomes your target. This keeps you from defaulting to one favorite cause. You have to look at the whole system around the worker.

Turn results into a plan#

The value of the PDC-HS is targeting. You do not treat every domain at once. You treat the one the assessment flags. That focus makes your intervention efficient.

Say the tool points to resources, not skill. Then more training would waste everyone's time. You fix the missing tool or the unclear process instead. The behavior often improves once the barrier is gone.

Reassess after your change. Check whether the staff behavior improved. If not, the tool helps you look again with fresh data. You can see this supervision mindset in Feedback as Critical Component of Supervision - Applied 2022.

Pair it with direct observation#

The PDC-HS is an indirect tool. It relies on what the informant reports. That report is useful, but it can miss things. Memory and bias can shade the answers.

So pair the checklist with a short observation. Watch the behavior in its real setting. Compare what you see to what the informant said. When both point the same way, you can act with confidence. When they differ, you know to dig deeper.

Barriers it uncovers, and why that beats guessing#

The PDC-HS surfaces causes teams tend to miss. One common finding is unclear task steps. Staff may not know exactly what "good" looks like. A quick task clarification often fixes this.

Another common finding is missing resources. A worker cannot chart data without a working form. The skill is fine, but the tool is absent. Fixing the resource solves the problem fast.

The tool also flags weak consequences. Good performance may go unnoticed for weeks. Feedback and recognition can restore the behavior. Naming the barrier lets you choose the right response.

Supervisors often jump straight to retraining. It feels productive, but it wastes time when skill is not the gap. The PDC-HS slows that reflex down. It makes you check the real cause first.

This protects the staff member too. Repeated training can feel like blame. It signals the person is the problem. The PDC-HS often shows the system is the problem instead. That shift builds trust and better morale.

It also makes your feedback fairer. You address the true barrier, not a guess. Staff can see that you looked before you acted. That respect goes a long way in supervision. Over time, it makes your whole team more open to coaching.

What the research says#

The PDC-HS has been tested for accuracy. A validity study of the revised PDC-HS (1.1) used video vignettes of supervisor interviews. The results supported using the tool in human-service settings (Jimenez et al., 2023). That gives supervisors a reason to trust it.

It also produces real change on the job. In three residential homes, the PDC-HS pointed to antecedent-based strategies for poor data collection. Data collection then increased across all three homes (Guercio & Hunyadi, 2023).

Researchers do note room to grow. One systematic review found that authors described how to administer the tool in varied ways. Some descriptions were unclear, so they call for a more standardized version (Goldman et al., 2023). Follow current guidance closely when you run it.

FAQ#

How is the PDC-HS different from the original PDC? The PDC-HS is the version built for human-service settings like ABA and schools. It shares the same core idea as the broader Performance Diagnostic Checklist.

Who fills out the PDC-HS? Usually the supervisor completes it about a supervisee. It is an informant assessment. You answer based on what you know about the person and the work setting.

Does the PDC-HS replace direct observation? No. It is an indirect, informant-based tool. Pairing it with direct observation gives you a fuller picture before you choose an intervention.