What is Positive Systems Approach?

The Positive Systems Approach (PSA), developed by Dr. Bob Carey and Terry Kirkpatrick, is a structured, strengths-based framework designed to address challenging behaviours by emphasizing proactive, person-centered strategies. Rooted in Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA), PSA focuses on understanding behaviour as a form of communication and seeks to build positive behaviors through environmental modifications, skill development, and collaborative support systems. Key components of PSA include conducting functional behaviour assessments to identify the underlying causes of behaviours, teaching practical problem-solving and coping skills tailored to individual needs, involving caregivers and support networks to ensure consistent reinforcement, and creating environments that promote independence while ensuring safety. By integrating these elements, PSA aims to empower individuals to achieve greater autonomy and improved quality of life.

"Positive Systems Approach" (PSA) has been widely used throughout Southwestern Ontario and, for over 20 years, Dr. Carey in conjunction with Regional Support Associates, offered formal training workshops and courses in PSA and Applied Behaviour Analysis to thousands of staff working in community settings as well as college students.  After Dr. Carey and Terry Kirkpatrick wrote the introductory book explaining how Positive Systems Approach has been used in the Developmental Disabilities field, there was a lot of demand requesting how this approach could be applied to parenting.  So, in 2025, Dr. Carey completed the follow-up book just for parents.  It is entitled:  "What if it's Not Just the Behaviour:  A New Way to Parent with Positive Systems Approach". As of June 2025, this new book is now available on Amazon where it can be purchased in ebook or hard cover format.   To understand what this book is all about, it is summarized below:

​

Unlock the real reasons behind your child’s behaviour—and transform your family life for good.  Parenting a child with disruptive behaviours can feel overwhelming, isolating, and defeating. Traditional discipline strategies often fall short, focusing on control and consequences instead of connection and understanding. But what if the behaviour you’re seeing isn’t the problem itself—but a symptom of something deeper?

In What if it’s Not Just the Behaviour?, clinical psychologist and behaviour specialist Dr. Bob Carey offers a groundbreaking, compassionate roadmap for parents. Rooted in decades of work with families and grounded in the Positive Systems Approach (PSA), this book shifts the lens from punishment to purpose—helping you understand your child’s behaviour as communication, not defiance.

This isn't another book of parenting hacks or quick fixes. It’s a system-wide rethink that empowers you to:

• Decode the root causes of your child’s behaviour—emotional, neurological, environmental, and developmental

• Build a home environment that supports safety, regulation, and emotional growth

• Stop power struggles before they start with proactive strategies

• Respond instead of react using PSA’s gentle yet effective tools like redirection, non-contingent reinforcement, and co-regulation

• Foster trust, skill-building, and resilience in both your child and yourself

• Align parenting across caregivers to create consistent and supportive systems

Through relatable stories, practical tools, reflection exercises, and step-by-step guidance, Dr. Carey equips you to move from surviving to thriving. You’ll learn how to build a parenting system that’s calm, connected, and deeply attuned to your child’s needs—without sacrificing boundaries or authority.

Whether your child has a formal diagnosis or simply struggles with meltdowns, aggression, or defiance, this book will help you see them—and yourself—with new clarity, compassion, and confidence.

Stop asking, “How do I fix this behaviour?” and start asking, “What is my child trying to tell me?” This book will show you how to listen—and how to lead with love.