Behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM)

In this context, districts and states have increasingly turned to the use of behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM) to assess concerning or threatening behaviors and provide appropriate interventions and supports to reduce the risk of harm.

The U.S. Secret Service pioneered BTAM in the early 1990s to protect prominent public officials and persons.

Since then, it has been adapted to prevent acts of targeted violence that impact other areas of the community, such as schools

Following the tragedy at Columbine High School in 1999, the Secret Service developed the field of BTAM in schools through a partnership with the Department of Education to examine targeted violence in K-12 schools and create protocols to help prevent future tragedies (Vossekuil et al., 2002).

BTAM is a proactive approach to identifying students whose behavior elicits concern for their safety or the safety of others, assessing the concerning behavior in context, and providing appropriate interventions and resources to manage the risk of harm while also supporting the student (National Threat Assessment Center, 2022).

Successful implementation requires coordinated effort among various stakeholders, including administrators, teachers, counselors, psychologists, families, and community partners, along with expertise in assessment and interventions that are both student-centered and evidence-based and which promote connection and belonging while minimizing student time away from learning.

BTAM is intended to support student needs before they escalate into acts of school violence or crisis requiring intervention by law enforcement or medical personnel.

This document begins with a description of the critical features of BTAM and best practices for BTAM implementation, then describes the essential elements of PBIS.

Behavioral threat assessment and management or “BTAM” (also known as behavioral threat assessment) is an evidence-based approach for preventing acts of targeted violence in schools.

In K-12 schools, behavioral threat assessment and management is a proactive, preventative, and supportive approach to: • Identify students who display behavior that elicits significant concern for the safety of themselves or others;

Assess the context of the concerning behaviors, along with information on the student’s actions and circumstances (e.g., bullying experiences, stressors, mental health needs, negative homelife factors, substance misuse and abuse) to evaluate the student’s risks and needs;

This nuanced approach to prevention focuses on early identification of students who pose a risk of harm to themselves or others and early intervention and support to reduce the risk and increase the likelihood of positive outcomes.

It also emphasizes a behavior-based approach to prevention, focusing on the behaviors a student displays that may communicate a need for greater care and concern.

Behavioral threat assessment and management is a systematic and proactive approach to preventing targeted violence in schools.

It has several defining characteristics and implementation factors.

Focuses on behaviors, not traits or profiles

Focusing on a continuum of concerning behaviors allows teams to identify students in distress and intervene before their behavior escalates to the point of harm to themselves or others.

Involves multidisciplinary school staff

Identifies threatening and other concerning behaviors and assesses them in context

Focusing on a continuum of concerning behaviors allows teams to identify students in distress and intervene before their behavior escalates to the point of harm to themselves or others.

Additionally, these defining characteristics and implementation factors of BTAM serve to address common misperceptions of its use.

In contrast, behavioral threat assessment purposefully considers the context surrounding a student’s behavior and uses that information to identify the most appropriate interventions and resources to support their needs.

The primary objective of a behavioral threat assessment is early identification and early intervention – in other words, proactive prevention.

Behavioral threat assessment focuses on understanding a student’s concerning behavior in context and identifying effective support and management strategies. It is unrelated to the physical security of a building (e.g., door locks and screening systems).

The team’s job is to receive reports of concerning student behavior and situations; gather additional information to better assess the student’s risks and needs; and identify interventions, supports, and resources to reduce the risk of harm to self or others and make positive outcomes for the student more likely.

While some schools or districts refer to their team as a Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) Team, others have opted to use other names such as Assessment and Care Team (ACT) to emphasize the care-based nature of the work or Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT) to highlight focusing on a spectrum of concerning behaviors.

Teams are encouraged to establish a low threshold for intervention and support. This will position the team to more comprehensively address a continuum of behaviors and identify students in distress before their behavior escalates to the point of harm to themselves or those around them.

Focuses on an individual student and their risk for engaging in violence or other harmful activities while delivering intervention strategies to manage that risk and support the student

Based on observable behavior • Prioritizes proactive prevention • Uses multidisciplinary teams for decision-making • Seeks to identify, assess, and provide interventions and supports • Emphasizes supportive, caring relationships between students and staff • Promotes safe and healthy school climates and cultures

Similarly, a school’s BTAM team guides implementation by receiving reports about concerning behaviors and situations, gathering additional information, assessing the risk of harm posed and to whom, and developing intervention and management strategies to reduce risk.

BTAM is a student safety and support process to address potential safety risks and provide student support and intervention.

To learn more about the implementation of behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM) in K-12 settings and NTAC’s research, see Enhancing School Safety Using a Threat Assessment Model, Protecting America’s Schools, Averting Targeted School Violence, and Improving School Safety Through Bystander Reporting.