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School‐wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) is a systemic approach for implementing a proactive schoolwide discipline and for improving students’ academic and behavioral outcomes by targeting the school’s organizational and social culture. With a multilevel approach, the present study evaluates the relative effectiveness of SWPBS on teachers’ perceptions of the student behavior (N = 3,295) across schools, teachers, and children using a multilevel approach. We assessed teacher perception of student problem behavior five times during a 3‐year implementation of SWPBS in 23 Dutch schools. Multilevel analyses not only revealed a small increase in perceived prosocial behavior and a small decrease in problems with peers, but also different effects across children, teachers, and schools. Effects were stronger for girls and for students with higher severity of perceived problems at baseline. At teachers’ level, higher mean baseline severity of perceived problems was associated with the reduced impact of SWPBS on perceived emotional problems and problems with peers. At the school level, effects were stronger for regular schools as compared with special needs schools.

Attending to instruction is a critical behavior for academic success. Many elementary school teachers, however, identify disruptive and inattentive classroom behaviors as key barriers to students’ successful educational performance. This study examined the impact of two class-wide positive behavior support programs. The Mystery Motivator and Get ‘Em On Task interventions were implemented in an alternating treatments design with fifth grade participants to decrease off-task behaviors. Results indicated that both interventions effectively decreased off-task behavior at the class-wide level. Implications and suggestions for future research on evidence-based behavioral interventions are discussed. C

Positive Behavior Support (PBS) for behavioral problems was included in the 1997 Individuals With Disabilities Education Act reauthorization, reflecting the increased implementation and strengthening empirical evidence for PBS in schools. Whereas PBS can be used reactively, its flexibility has led to a popular comprehensive school-wide model used for prevention. School-Wide Positive Behavioral Support (SWPBS) has been used across a variety of school environments and various demographics and has been evaluated using a variety of different outcome measures. The authors conducted a meta-analysis of SWPBS research spanning 16 years and 20 articles. Specifically, single-case studies were evaluated using a regression-based procedure. Results show promising early trends in the data across dependent variables with a need for further research in specific areas. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

This study examined the relationships between implementation of a school-wide approach to behavior, School-wide Positive Behavior Support (SWPBS), and teacher self-efficacy. Twenty-two teachers from schools implementing SWPBS and 40 teachers from schools not implementing SWPBS completed a questionnaire measuring aspects of self-efficacy. Differences in ratings of self-efficacy were examined using multilevel modeling. Results showed that teachers at SWPBS schools reported significantly higher perceptions of teacher self-efficacy when controlling for school-level effects. Results are discussed in terms of implications for future research and practice. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The purpose of this study was to conduct an experimental analysis of teachers’ use of functional assessment (FA) and positive behavior support (PBS) for addressing challenging behaviors in young children. A group of 35 experimental teachers participated in professional development designed to provide step-by-step training and guided implementation of FA linked to PBS intervention planning for children identified with challenging behavior in prekindergarten through first-grade classrooms. A randomly designated group of 35 control teachers received neither training nor consultation for implementing FA and PBS. At post-intervention, experimental teachers reported increased resilience as evidenced in their significantly higher competence and self-efficacy along with greater utilization of FA and PBS practices compared with control teachers. Increased levels of resilience were also documented on multiple measures for experimental children with challenging behaviors who received FA and PBS. Specifically, experimental children demonstrated more positive behaviors and fewer challenging behaviors compared with control children at post-intervention. The findings offer empirical support for providing professional development in FA and PBS as a proactive strategy for promoting improved competence for teachers and, more importantly, for improving resilience among children with behavioral concerns. C � 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

This article describes the use of an observation system to measure middle-school staff practices, environment characteristics, and student behavior in the school common areas. Data were collected at baseline from 18 middle schools participating in a randomized controlled trial of school-wide Positive Behavior Support. The observations were reliable and showed sensitivity to differences between school settings and between schools. Multilevel models with students nested in schools were used to examine the associations of staff practices and the school environment with student behavior. Less effective behavior management and more staff criticism, graffiti, and percentage of low-income students were associated with student problem behaviors. Greater use of effective behavior management and positive attention, and fewer low-income students were associated with positive student behavior. The use of data-based feedback to schools for intervention planning and monitoring is illustrated. Implications for school-wide efforts to improve student behavior in middle schools are discussed. This article reports on an observation system for measuring middle-school staff practices, environment characteristics, and student behavior in school common areas. The observation system was developed to measure the outcomes of school-wide interventions aimed at improving middle-school practices and environmental characteristics in an effort to decrease problem behaviors and increase positive behaviors in middle-school students. Almost two thirds of aggressive incidents at school occur outside of the classroom in a school common area (Lockwood, 1997). Middle-school students feel particularly unsafe in school areas that are lacking adult supervision (Astor, Meyer, & Pitner, 2001). The observation system therefore focuses on common areas of the school―places where students spend time before and after school starts, during passing times between classes, and during school breaks―such as hallways, the cafeteria, outdoor areas, the gym or game room, and school entryways and bus areas. The aims of this article are to describe the observation system procedures, reliability, and sensitivity to detect differences and to examine associations of observed staff practices and school environment characteristics with student behavior. The use of such descriptive and correlational information from baseline data can inform researchers and educators about potential mechanisms of school-wide efforts for student behavior improvement.

A random sample of 213 school psychologists working in a school setting completed a survey on their schools' current anti-bullying practices. Talking with bullies following bullying incidents, disciplinary consequences for bullies, and increasing adult supervision were the three most frequently used strategies. Peer juries/court, an anti-bullying committee, and peer counselors were least frequently used, according to respondents. School-wide positive behavior support, modifying space and schedule, and immediate responses to bullying incidents were perceived as most effective, whereas avoiding contact between bullies and victims, a zero-tolerance policy with bullies, and a written anti-bullying policy were least effective. Results and implications are discussed within the context of empirically supported practices. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

In this article, we provide an overview of School-wide Positive Behavior Support (SWPBS), an approach to building protective school cultures and preventing the development of problem behavior through instruction, environmental redesign, and attention to systems-level variables. We define the critical features of SWPBS within a prevention science lens, including identification of its conceptual foundations, proximal mediators of student outcomes, and current research base and goals. Given its evidence of effectiveness, we describe efforts and a research agenda in the area of sustainability of SWPBS, including a description of a proposed model of sustainability and a case study of statewide implementation with steps taken to promote sustained implementation. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Internships play a pivotal role in the future of school psychology, and internship training is influenced by disciplinary trends including (a) an increased focus on accountability and demonstrating the positive impact of trainees' practices on student outcomes and (b) growing emphasis on scientifically based and empirically based practice. These influences also include greater sophistication in decision making as well as different ways of outcome-focused decision making. System-wide approaches such as Positive Behavior Support (PBS) and response to intervention (RTI) require high training demands to develop intervention-related decision and accountability skills. Programmatically, accountability systems to meet the training needs of intervention services require scaling up. This article describes a multiyear developmental project bringing diverse universities together to institutionalize a statewide system of accountability. We share data from 3 years (N of interns = 278) and suggest recommendations for outcome-oriented evaluation for other universities, agencies, school psychological services delivery units, or states. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

School-wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) has been identified as an effective and efficient method to teach students prosocial skills. It requires both effective behavior support practices and systems that will support these changes, including data-based decision making among the school leadership team. There are many practical and systemic factors that school personnel should examine before they consider themselves ready for systemic school-wide changes, including those associated with the (a) leadership team, (b) staff, (c) administration, (d) coach/facilitator, and (e) district. Practical considerations in each of these areas will be identified and discussed so that practitioners can anticipate their needs as they create effective SWPBS, particularly in low performing urban schools. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 44: 29–39, 2007.

An emerging literature on school-wide Positive Behavior Support (PBS) in urban settings suggests the utility of PBS in addressing student social development while decreasing the need for disciplinary actions (i.e., office disciplinary referrals [ODRs]). This research represents a significant addition to, and expansion of, this literature by examining the relationship of school-wide PBS-induced reductions in out-of-class referrals to student academic achievement. School-wide PBS was implemented in an urban, inner-city middle school in the Midwest over a 3-year period. Data on ODRs, suspensions, standardized test scores, and treatment fidelity were gathered and analyzed. Results demonstrated significant reductions in ODRs and suspensions and increases in standardized math and reading scores. Additionally, regression analyses suggested a significant relationship between student problem behavior and academic performance. Treatment adherence to PBS procedures was significantly correlated with reductions in problem behavior. These findings are discussed in terms of helping urban schools address challenging behavior. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Schools today face a number of challenges in educating students. In addition to the responsibility of effectively teaching academic subjects such as math, reading, science, the arts, and writing, educators must increasingly deal with nonacademic factors that influence the instruction they provide. Among these factors, one of the most challenging is emotional and behavioral disorders. It is estimated that approximately 10% of children and adolescents in the United States suffer from some form of mental illness that significantly impairs their ability to function in

The articles in this special Practitioner's Edition of Psychology in the Schools share the application of sound educational and behavioral practices in real school and classroom contexts. Given this emphasis in these articles on the applied use of behavioral practices, the purpose of this brief commentary is to highlight and comment on some of the “big ideas” that link these practitioner-focused articles. Specifically, three main questions are addressed: (a) Where did the “triangle” come from? (b) Why are schools increasing their use of local data to guide decision making? (c) What is school-wide positive behavior support? © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 44: 113–118, 2007.

Although it has been argued that students with behavioral disorders benefit most from placement in general education classrooms, careful and systematic support is required to insure that their placement is successful. In this article, we review supports and interventions provided at multiple levels that together are known as “positive behavior support” (PBS). The levels include school-wide PBS, which involves the full student body; classroom-based PBS, focusing on the individual class as the unit of analysis; and individualized PBS, addressing the individualized needs of specific students. When relatively intense and chronic behavior problems exist, individualized PBS involves the use of functional behavioral assessments and proactive, educative interventions. In this article, we describe each of these levels with reference to the empirical literature and with an emphasis on practical applications. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 42: 779–794, 2005.

The purpose of this article is to provide the reader with an orientation to the concepts and principles of autonomy and self-determination and the application of those concepts and principles to working with children and adolescents who have intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD), including autism. Self-determination is essentially the ability of a person to be autonomous as to meaningful life choices and encompasses activities such as problem solving, decision making, goal setting, self-observation and evaluation, self-management and reinforcement, acquiring an internal locus of control, experiencing positive attributions of efficacy and outcome expectancy, developing a realistic and positive self-image, and self awareness. The lack of opportunities for self-determination, personal expression and consideration of personal preferences experienced by this population has been associated with increased psychiatric disturbance. Several principles supporting self-determination, including positive psychology and use of positive alternatives, are discussed by the authors. Further, practices that generate more opportunities for individuals to exercise personal control and autonomy across activities and environments in order to prevent psychological problems are discussed. Finally, the school psychologist's role in promoting the development of autonomy and self initiative among children and adolescents with ID/DD are outlined within the contexts of assessment practices, interventions and curriculums, positive behavior support technology, and continued educational reforms and systems change. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 41: 143–153, 2004.

In an effort to reduce problem behavior, it is recommended that schools develop a continuum of positive behavior support (PBS) that focuses on prevention/early intervention as well as individualized student support systems for those students who display chronic problem behaviors. While there is a large database to support the use of PBS practices at the individual student level, the knowledge base supporting prevention/early intervention strategies is characterized as emerging. The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of PBS prevention/early intervention strategies on the rate of problem behavior displayed by elementary school students during recess. Specifically, this study examined the effects of directly teaching playground-related behaviors and the use of a group contingency to reinforce mastery in an elementary school. Results indicated that the intervention reduced the frequency of problem behavior across three recess periods. Results are discussed with respect to support of an emerging empirical database and implications for practice. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.