Behavior Chain Analysis is a technique used in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) to understand the events that lead up to a specific problem behavior. By breaking down the sequence of events, thoughts, and feelings, you can identify “links” in the chain where different choices or coping skills could have been applied to prevent the behavior.

Target Behaviors

Target behaviors are actions you want to decrease or increase in your life. You want to increase beneficial behaviors and decrease harmful ones. Triggers are what lead to using Target Behaviors.

DBT Treatment Hierarchy (Adaptive Functioning):

  1. Creating A Life Worth Living
  2. Increasing Behavioral Skills
  3. Decreasing Quality-of-Life Interfering Behaviors
  4. Decreasing Therapy-Interfering Behaviors
  5. Decreasing Life-Threatening Behaviors

My Target Behaviors: _________________________________________________ 

Triggers: ___________________________________________________________

Instructions for Chain Analysis Worksheet

1. Describe the specific PROBLEM BEHAVIOR (e.g., throwing a chair, cutting, hearing voices, dissociating, not coming to a therapy appointment, etc.)

  • A. Be very specific and detailed. No vague terms.
  • B. Identify precisely what you did, said, thought, or felt.
  • C. Describe the intensity of the behavior and other important characteristics.
  • D. Describe it in enough detail that an actor could recreate the behavior exactly.

2. Describe the specific PROMPTING EVENT: Start with the environmental event that started the whole chain. A prompting event is an event outside the person that triggers the chain of events leading to the problem behavior.

3. Describe in detail the VULNERABILITY FACTORS: What was happening before the prompting event that made you more vulnerable to the chain starting? (e.g., physical illness, lack of sleep, stressful week, skipped meals).

4. Describe in detail the CHAIN OF EVENTS: Enumerate each link in the chain. These include:

  • Actions: What you did.
  • Body Sensations: Physical feelings (e.g., racing heart).
  • Cognitions: Thoughts, beliefs, or self-talk.
  • Feelings/Emotions: What you were feeling (e.g., anger, fear).
  • Events: Things that happened in the environment.

5. Describe the CONSEQUENCES: What happened immediately after the behavior, and what happened later?

  • Immediate consequences: (e.g., temporary relief from pain).
  • Delayed consequences: (e.g., guilt, damaged relationship).

Analysis and Repair

6. Skillful Alternative Behaviors

  • A. Look back at your chain of events. Circle each point or link where you could have avoided the problem behavior if you had done something different.
  • B. What could you have done differently at each link? What coping behaviors or skillful behaviors could you have used?

7. Prevention Strategy: Describe in detail a strategy for how you could have kept the chain from starting by reducing your vulnerability.

8. Solving the Prompting Event: Describe a plan for solving the prompting event (if it were to happen again) or keeping it from happening again.

9. Harmful Consequences: Think through the harmful consequences. Look at yourself, your environment, and the people in your environment to determine what needs to be repaired.

10. Repair and Correction: Describe what you will do to REPAIR significant consequences and CORRECT the harm. How will you make things just a little bit better than before (OVERCORRECT)?

11. Deepest Thoughts and Feelings: Use this space to write for five minutes about your deepest thoughts and feelings regarding this episode.

This worksheet is designed to help you gain insight into your patterns and empower you to make different choices in the future. Behavior change is a process of learning and practicing new skills.