Transcript Our Children Can’t Wait — Improving Services for Children

Primary and Secondary Prevention
Strategies for School-Based Conflict
Management and Violence Prevention
Carl E. Paternite, Ph.D.
Center for School-Based Mental Health Programs
Department of Psychology
Miami University (Ohio)
http://www.units.muohio.edu/csbmhp
Therese C. Johnston, Ph.D.
Positive Education Program (PEP)
Cleveland, Ohio
http://www.pepcleve.org
Presentation at the All Ohio Counselors Conference, Columbus, OH
November 8th, 2002
Instructional Objectives
 Increase awareness of interpersonal conflict & violence as
barriers to student learning.
 Increase awareness of the importance of school-based efforts to
implement conflict management & violence prevention programs.
 Increase awareness of evidence-based primary & secondary
prevention programs.
 Highlight cross-discipline collaboration to address emotional &
behavioral barriers to student learning.
Mental Health Needs of Youth and
Available Services
 By conservative estimation approximately 20% of children and
adolescents need mental health intervention.
 Less than one-third of these youth actually receive any service, and, of
those who do, less than half receive adequate treatment.
 For the small percentage of youth who do receive service, most actually
receive it within a school setting.
 These realities raise questions about the mental health field’s overreliance on clinic-based treatment, and have reinforced the importance of
alternative models for mental health service — especially expanded
school-based programs.
Expanded School-Based
Mental Health Programs
 National movement to place effective mental health programs in
schools.
 To promote the academic, behavioral, social, emotional, and
contextual/systems well-being of youth, and to reduce “mental health”
barriers to school success.
 Programs incorporate primary prevention and mental health promotion,
secondary prevention, and intensive intervention.
 Intent is to contribute to building capacity for a comprehensive,
multifaceted, and integrated system of support and care.
The Ohio Mental Health Network for
School Success
(http://www.units.muohio.edu/csbmhp/network.html)
Mission
To help Ohio’s school districts, community-based
agencies, and families work together to achieve
improved educational and developmental outcomes
for all children — especially those at emotional or
behavioral risk and those with mental health
problems, including pupils participating in alternative
education programs.
The Ohio Mental Health Network for
School Success
Action Agenda
 Create awareness about the gap between children’s mental
health needs and “treatment” resources, and encourage
improved and expanded services.
 Encourage mental health agencies and school districts to adopt
mission statements that address the importance of partnerships.
 Conduct surveys of mental health agencies and school districts
to better define the mental health needs of children and to
gather information about promising practices.
The Ohio Mental Health Network for
School Success
Action Agenda (continued)
 Provide technical assistance to mental health agencies and school
districts, to support adoption of evidence-based and promising
practices, including improvement and expansion of school-based
mental health services.
 Develop a guide for education and mental health professionals and
families, for the development of productive partnerships.
 Assist in identification of sources of financial support for schoolbased mental health initiatives.
 Assist university-based professional preparation programs in
psychology, social work, public health, and education, in
developing inter-professional strategies and practices for
addressing the mental health needs of school-age children.
Potential of Schools as Key Points of
Engagement
 Opportunities to engage youth where they are.
 Unique opportunities for intensive, multifaceted
approaches and are essential contexts for
prevention and research activity.
Interconnected Systems for Meeting the
Needs of All Students
CONTINUUM OF SCHOOL AND COMMUNITY PROGRAMS AND SERVICES
(From Adelman & Taylor, http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu)
Continuum of Effective Behavior
Support
Students with
Chronic/Intense
Problem Behavior
(1 - 7%)
Tertiary Prevention
Secondary Prevention
Students At-Risk
for Problem
Behavior
(5-15%)
Students
without
Serious
Problem
Behaviors
(80 -90%)
Primary Prevention
All Students in School
Specialized Individual
Interventions
(Individual Student
System)
Specialized Group
Interventions
(At-Risk System)
Universal Interventions
(School-Wide System
Classroom System)
Educators as Key Members of the
Mental Health Team
 Schools should not be held responsible for meeting every need of
every student.
 However, schools must meet the challenge when the need directly
affects learning and school success. (Carnegie Council Task Force
on Education of Young Adolescents, 1989)
 There is clear and compelling evidence that there are strong
positive associations between mental health and school success.
Educators as Key Members of
the Mental Health Team
 “Children whose emotional, behavioral, or social difficulties are
not addressed have a diminished capacity to learn and benefit
from the school environment. In addition, children who develop
disruptive behavior patterns can have a negative influence on the
social and academic environment for other children.” (Rones &
Hoagwood, 2000, p.236)
 Contemporary school reform—and the associated high-stakes
testing (including recently signed federal legislation)—has not
incorporated the Carnegie Council imperative. That is, recent
reform has not adequately incorporated a focus on addressing
barriers to development, learning, and teaching.
Some of What We Know About Youth Violence
From the Surgeon General (2001), U.S. Secret Service (2000),
CDC (2002), Mulvey & Cauffman (2001)
 Violence is a serious public health problem.
 Violence is most often expressive/interpersonal, rather than primarily instrumental or
psychopathological.
 About 30 to 40 percent of male and 15 to 30 percent of female youth report having
committed a serious violent offense by age 17.
 About 10 to15 percent of high school seniors report that they have committed an assault
with injury in the past year — a rate that has been rising since 1980.
 By self-report, about 30 percent of high school seniors have committed a violent act in
the past year — hit instructor or supervisor; serious fight at school or work; in group
fight; assault with injury; used weapon (knife/gun/club) to get something from a person.
 Violent acts are committed much more frequently by male than by female youth. (see
Miedzian, 1991)
Some of What We Know About Youth Violence (continued)
 43% of male and 24% of female high school students report that they had been in a physical
fight during the past school year. (CDC, 2002)
 No differences are evident by race for self-report of violent behavior.
 At school, highest victimization rates are among male students.
 Violent behavior seldom results from a single cause.
 School continues to be one of the safest places for our nation’s children.
 Serious acts of violence (e.g., shootings) at school are very rare.
 Targeted violence at school is not a new phenomenon.
 Most school shooters had a history of gun use and had access to them.
 In over 2/3 of school shooting cases, having been bullied played a role in the attack.
“For every complex
problem there is a
simple solution that
is wrong.”
H.L. Mencken
Model: Influences on Violent versus
Non-Violent Behavior
(From Shapiro, 1999,Applewood Centers, Inc., Cleveland, OH)
Prioritizing Promotion of Healthy
Development and Violence Prevention
 School-based models should capitalize on schools’ unique
opportunities to provide health-promoting activities.
 Recommended strategies for violence prevention, including
those for which the central role of educators is evident, can
be promoted actively within an expanded school-based
mental health program.
Some of What We Know About
Youth Violence Prevention
From the Surgeon General (2001), U.S. Secret Service (2000),
CDC (2002), Mulvey & Cauffman (2001)
 Promoting healthy relationships and environments is more effective for
reducing school violence than instituting punitive penalties.
 The best predictor of adolescent well-being is a feeling of connection to
school. Students who feel close to others, fairly treated, and vested in school
are less likely to engage in risky behaviors.
 A critical component of any effective school violence program is a school
environment in which ongoing activities and problems of students are
discussed, rather than tallied. Such an environment promotes ongoing risk
management, which depends on the support and involvement of those closest
to the indicators of trouble — peers and teachers.
Violence Prevention:
What Doesn’t Work
From the Surgeon General (2001) and others
 Scare tactics. (e.g., Scared Straight)
 Deterrence programs — shock incarceration, boot camps.
 Efforts focusing exclusively on providing education/information
about drugs/violence and resistance. (DARE)
 Efforts focusing solely on self-esteem enhancement.
 Vocational counseling.
 Residential treatment.
 Traditional casework and clinic-based counseling.
Promoting Nonviolence: An
Example of a Heuristic
School-Based Framework
Deutsch (1993) — Educating for a peaceful world
Four Key Components Including:
 Cooperative Learning.
 Conflict Resolution Training.
 Use of Constructive Controversy in Teaching Subject
Matters.
 Mediation in the Schools.
Prioritizing Promotion of Healthy
Development and Violence Prevention:
Best and Promising Practices
Including:
Structured social skill development programs.
Mentoring. (see Big Brothers/Sisters; Garbarino, 1999)
Employment.
Programs that foster school engagement, participation, and bonding.
Promotion of developmental assets. (see Search Institute)
A variety of approaches that engage parents and families. (e.g., parent
training, MST, functional FT)
Early childhood home visitation programs.
Multi-faceted programs that combine several of the above.
For good examples see “Blueprint Programs.”
Developmental Assets and Violence
(1997 data, www.search-institute.org)
Approximately 100,000 6th-12th graders.
Definition of violence—three or more acts of fighting,
hitting, injuring a person, carrying a weapon, or threatening
physical harm in the past 12 months.
 61% of youth with fewer than 11 of 40
developmental assets were violent.
 6% of youth with 31 or more of 40 developmental
assets were violent.
Continuum of Effective Behavior
Support
Students with
Chronic/Intense
Problem Behavior
(1 - 7%)
Tertiary Prevention
Secondary Prevention
Students At-Risk
for Problem
Behavior
(5-15%)
Students
without
Serious
Problem
Behaviors
(80 -90%)
Primary Prevention
All Students in School
Specialized Individual
Interventions
(Individual Student
System)
Specialized Group
Interventions
(At-Risk System)
Universal Interventions
(School-Wide System
Classroom System)
Discipline Defined
• “The steps or actions, teachers,
administrators, parents, and students
follow to enhance student academic and
social behavior success.”
• “Effective discipline is described as
teaching students self-control.”
Reactive Vs. Proactive
• Traditional approaches. (including aversive
interventions)
– Address problem behaviors reactively
– Crisis driven
• PBS emphasizes proactive interventions.
Positive Behavior Support
• PBS is the application of behavior
analysis to achieve socially
important behavior change.
Terminology
• Positive Behavior….
– Includes all skills that increase success in
home, school and community settings.
• Supports….
– Methods to teach, strengthen, and expand
positive behaviors.
– System change.
Systems Change
****DEFINING FEATURE OF PBS****
• Efforts focused on fixing problem contexts, not problem
behavior.
• Successful outcomes can not depend solely on
identifying ONE key critical intervention to “fix” the
problem.
PBS Interventions
• Context driven.
• Addressing the functionality of the
behavior problem.
• Acceptable to the individual, family and
community.
PBS is a Problem-Solving
Process
• Decisions are based upon functional
behavioral assessment. (FBA)
• FBA directs intervention design.
– FBA establishes instructional targets for
alternative skills
– FBA designates supports and context revisions
required for maintenance of positive changes
Goals
1.
Improved quality of life for all relevant
stakeholders. (the individual, family members,
teachers, friends, employers, etc.)
2.
Problem behaviors become irrelevant, inefficient,
and ineffective and are replaced by efficient and
effective alternatives.
Continuum of Effective Behavior
Support
Students with
Chronic/Intense
Problem Behavior
(1 - 7%)
Tertiary Prevention
Secondary Prevention
Students At-Risk
for Problem
Behavior
(5-15%)
Students
without
Serious
Problem
Behaviors
(80 -90%)
Primary Prevention
All Students in School
Specialized Individual
Interventions
(Individual Student
System)
Specialized Group
Interventions
(At-Risk System)
Universal Interventions
(School-Wide System
Classroom System)
Components of School-Wide
Systems
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Common philosophy.
Positively stated rules. (3 or 4)
Behavior expectations defined by context.
Teaching behavior expectations in context.
Reinforcement of expectations.
Discouragement of violations.
Monitor and evaluate effects.
Promoting Nonviolence: An
Example of a Promising Violence
Prevention Program
Positive Adolescent Choices Training (PACT)
Developed by
Betty R. Yung & W. Rodney Hammond
Components
I. Violence-Risk Education
II. Anger Management
III. Social Skills
PACT Components I and II
Violence Risk Education:
 Increase awareness of circumstances, risk
factors, and consequences of violence.
Anger Management:
 Understand and normalize feelings of anger,
recognize anger triggers, and manage anger
constructively.
PACT Components III:
Social Skills
Givin’ It:
 Expressing criticism, disappointment, anger, or
displeasure calmly and ventilating strong
emotions constructively.
Takin’ It:
 Listening, understanding, and reacting
appropriately to others’ criticism and anger.
Workin’ IT Out:
 Listening, identifying problems and potential
solutions, proposing alternatives when
disagreements persist, and learning to
compromise.
References
Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development’s Task Force on Education of Young Adolescents (1989).
Turning points: Preparing American youth for the 21st century. Washington, DC: Author.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Surveillance summaries, June 28, 2002. MMWR 2002:51 (No. SS4). (www.cdc.gov/yrbss)
Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science. (1999). Blueprints for
violence prevention. University of Colorado at Boulder: Author.
Deutsch, M. (1993). Educating for a peaceful world. American Psychologist, 48, 510-517.
Garbarino, J. (1999). Lost boys: Why our sons turn violent and how we can save them. New York: Anchor
Books.
Miedzian, M. (1991). Boys will be boys: Breaking the link between masculinity and violence. New York: Anchor
Books.
Mulvey, E.P. & Cauffman, E. (2001). The inherent limits of predicting school violence. American Psychologist,
56, 797-802.
O'Neil, R. E., Horner, R. H., Albin, R. W., Storey, K., Sprague, J. R., & Newton, J. S. (1997). Functional
assessment and program development for problem behavior: A practical handbook. Pacific Grove, CA:
Brooks/Cole.
PBS Website: www.pbis.org
Rones, M. & Hoagwood, K. (2000). School-based mental health services: A research review. Clinical Child and
Family Psychology Review, 3, 223-241.
References (cont’d)
Search Institute: www.search-institute.org
Shapiro, J. The Peacemakers Program: Effective violence prevention for students in grades four through eight.
Presented as part of a pre-conference session on innovative school-based approaches to address violence in
youth, at the 4th National Conference on Advancing School-Based Mental Health Programs, Denver,
September 16-18, 1999. (contact through Applewood Centers, Inc., Cleveland, OH).
Special Section on Urban Issues- Part 1 (2002). Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 4(4), 195-218.
Special Series on Positive Behavior Support in Schools (2002). Journal of Emotional and Behavioral
Disorders,10(3).
Sugai, G., Lewis-Palmer, T., & Hagan, S. (1998). Using functional assessments to develop behavior support
plans. Preventing School Failure, 43(1), 6-13.
UCLA Center for Mental Health in Schools: http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu
University of Maryland at Baltimore Center for School Mental Health Assistance: http://csmha.umaryland.edu
U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2001). Youth violence: A report of the Surgeon General.
Washington, D. C.: Author.
Vossekuil, B. et al. (2000). U. S. Secret Service safe school initiative: An interim report on the prevention of
targeted violence in schools. Washington, D. C.: U. S. Secret Service.
Yung, B. & Hammond, W. R. (1995). PACT — Positive Adolescent Choices Training: A model for violence
prevention groups with African American youth. Program guide. Champaign, IL: Research Press.Center for
Disease Control and Prevention. Surveillance summaries, June 28, 2002. MMWR 2002:51 (No. SS-4).
(www.cdc.gov/yrbss)