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Parental involvement in school is an undoubtedly important element of a student's educational experience and outcomes. Students with elevated emotional and behavioral risks (EBR) tend to experience poor educational outcomes, and research suggests varying levels of parental involvement across domains for these at-risk students. However, there is minimal research on the links between elevated EBR, parental involvement, and academic achievement for high school students. The purpose of this study was to examine the degree to which (a) parental involvement differed between high school students with elevated EBR and students without EBR, (b) parental involvement was related to academic outcomes, and (c) the gap in academic achievement between students with elevated EBR and students without EBR could be attributed to differences in parental involvement. To address these questions, we fit a structural equation model using data from the High School Longitudinal Survey of 2009. The results demonstrated that (a) parental involvement was significantly lower in multiple domains for students with elevated EBR, (b) was significantly associated with academic outcomes, and (c) differences in parental involvement could account for a significant proportion of the achievement gap. Research limitations, directions for future research directions, and implications are discussed.

Often the characteristics of students with emotional and behavioral disturbances (EBDs) are described in terms of how they compare to students with and without other disabilities. However, such a conceptualization or categorization may overshadow differences that exist among these youth, and few studies examine unique subpopulations within this group. To explore meaningful differences and similarities among students with EBD, which could help to facilitate customization of interventions and supports, we conducted a latent profile analysis of over 300 middle school students receiving special education services for emotional or behavioral needs. Results identified four profiles using demographic variables, school setting (alternative school or not), teacher ratings of behavior and academic competence, and parent report on child suspensions. Criterion variables were then tested, with significant differences identified in use of mental health services, parent empowerment, and caregiver strain. However, significant differences were not found in parent satisfaction with school. Limitations, implications, and the need for additional research are discussed.

Parents who are knowledgeable of special education are more likely to engage in their child's education. Parents seek information about special education from a number of sources including State Departments of Education (SDEs). However, little is known about the web-based special education resources SDEs provide to parents. We sought to address this gap by conducting a comprehensive review of SDE websites and special education resources. Two-thirds of SDEs provided special education resources in a parent-designated section of their website. The number of resources provided varied greatly by state and the majority of resources were specific to conflict/dispute resolution. Future research should explore how information provided can best support increased parental knowledge to improve parental engagement. Limitations and implications are discussed. [For the corresponding grantee submission, see ED605808.]

This project explored the reliability and utility of transcription in coding qualitative data across two studies in a program evaluation context. The first study tested the method of direct audio coding, or coding audio files without transcripts, using qualitative data software. The presence and frequency of codes applied in direct audio coding and traditional transcription coding were compared and the two methods produced similar results. Direct audio coding was then employed in an evaluation study to monitor implementation and the method was found to be reliable. Implications are discussed with considerations for both researchers and practitioners.

This study conducted a randomized trial to examine the efficacy of the Boys Town In-Home Family Services (IHFS) program for families of high-risk youth. Participants were recruited from a state helpline for families struggling with poor family functioning and child emotional or behavioral issues. Consent was obtained for 300 of which 152 were randomly assigned to participate in IHFS for 3-4 months and 148 were assigned to the services as usual comparison group. For the families in the treatment group, 18% did not participant in the intervention, and 66% of families received 20 or more service hours. Parent report data were collected at intake, post, as well 6 and 12 months after post data collection. Data were collected on constructs such as caregiver strain, family functioning, parenting, family resources, and parent report of child behavior. Piecewise analyses of the intake to post data indicated significantly greater reductions in caregiver strain for the treatment condition. Given the conservative corrections for the use of multiple tests, no other measures demonstrated significant differences. For the piecewise model of the maintenance phase, there were no significant differences between groups aside from caregiver strain that showed a significant improvement for the comparison condition. Supplementary dose-response analyses indicated that for most families there was an ideal dosage of about 25-75 hr to bring about the largest improvements in caregiver strain, parenting skills, and child behavior.

Assessing treatment integrity is essential to understanding how well school-based interventions are delivered. The assessment of treatment integrity is especially challenging for interventions that provide one-on-one peer support over the phone. To address this gap, we explored treatment integrity approaches used for the "Parent Connectors" program, which provides parent-to-parent support via weekly phone calls to families of students receiving special education services for emotional and behavioral disturbance. Our multi-dimensional approach to assessing treatment integrity includes the consideration of dose, adherence, quality of service delivery, participant responsiveness to the intervention and program differentiation. We share and discuss data from a variety of approaches that have been used with this intervention to collect treatment integrity data such as logs completed by the trained parents following each phone call, content ratings of behavioral rehearsals between trained parents and research staff and surveys regarding services received from participants. We discuss obstacles collecting treatment implementation data, ways our approach is continually evolving and possibilities of applying some treatment integrity approaches to wide-scale intervention applications in the field. [For the corresponding grantee submission, see ED615081.]

Supporting the needs of youth with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) and their families can be challenging in rural settings. Implementing strategies that take into account for and address barriers in rural settings is important. One strategy to improve outcomes for both students with EBD and their families in rural settings is providing parental support. Parent Connectors is a phone-based parent-to-parent support program designed to improve parental engagement in their child's education and mental health services. Parent Connectors is described in detail along with preliminary outcomes and implications for rural communities.

One strategy to improve outcomes for students with emotional and behavioral disorders and their families in rural settings is providing parental support. Through interviews with special education administrators and student services personnel representing several rural regions, this exploratory study sought to identify the needs of youth with emotional and behavioral challenges and their families, potential barriers to accessing school and community services, and the feasibility of implementing a phone-based parent-to-parent support program in rural communities. Findings indicated increased efforts in providing mental health services in the school, several service access barriers, and strategies for improving parent support in rural settings.

Residential care has been criticized for its high cost and limited research evidence. While recent studies and reviews of the literature suggest that a number of evidence-based practices are being implemented in residential care settings, more research is needed to develop and test empirically based practices that can be successfully implemented in residential care. In this article, we offer a promising strategy to address this issue: a long-term research partnership between a large service provider agency and a university-based research center to conduct a program of research which has resulted in translation of evidence-supported practices into service provider programs, contributions to the science of residential care, and training opportunities for young applied scientists to specialize in this important work. This evolving program of research includes four core applied research topic areas in which this collaboration has had some ongoing success: program and practice implementation fidelity, therapeutic process factors, aftercare, and psychotropic medication use. We suggest that this type of long-term collaborative research partnership is an approach for others to consider for conducting research that informs effective residential care practices.

Children receiving services for severe emotional and behavioral difficulties are less likely to have parents who are involved in their education and support services. Peer-to-peer family support programs are one approach to increasing the self-efficacy and empowerment of parents' engagement in the treatment of a child's mental health conditions. Furthermore, programs providing parental support may reduce the strain and negative consequences caregivers may experience due to the stress of caring for a child with emotional and behavioral needs. Although much is known about the relation between caregivers' strain and children's use of mental health services, less is known about caregiver strain and parents' participation in family support programs. This study evaluated whether caregiver strain predicted parents' (N = 52) participation in a phone-based, peer-to-peer support intervention. Results of the regression analysis indicated that highly strained parents participated in four to seven more phone conversations over the course of intervention, which occurred across the academic year. Therefore, findings have implications for the school and mental health providers aiming to increase the involvement of parents of children with emotional and behavioral disorders.

Parents of children with emotional and behavioral needs frequently experience difficulty navigating community-based services for their child, as well as experience increased stress and parental strain. Peer-to-peer support programs are an emerging approach to assist these parents, and evidence suggests that they are effective in increasing parents' perceptions of social support, self-efficacy, and well-being. However, these programs often focus on parents of youth with diagnosed mental health disorders, despite the potential benefit for parents of youth who are at-risk for significant emotional and behavioral problems. In the current study, we used a pre-post design to evaluate a community-based, peer-to-peer support prevention program delivered via telephone to parents (N = 139) of youth with emerging behavioral and emotional difficulties. We evaluated (1) whether the intervention was delivered as designed, (2) the pre- and post-intervention gains in social support and concrete support, and (3) whether parents' level of participation in the intervention and program adherence predicted outcomes. Results indicated that the intervention was delivered as intended and resulted in increased parental perceived social support and concrete support over time. Furthermore, higher levels of parental participation and intervention adherence were associated with increases in perceived social support. Thus, findings suggest that it may be beneficial for parents of at-risk youth with significant emotional and behavioral difficulties to engage in a peer-to-peer phone support prevention program.

Youth at risk of emotional and behavioral challenges demonstrate academic difficulties in secondary settings. Parental involvement in their child's education is one method which contributes to improved academic outcomes. However, limited research exists on the use of measurement models to operationalize parental involvement with secondary students at risk for emotional and behavioral issues. The goal of this study was to examine the measurement properties of an existing three-domain conceptualization of parental involvement including school-based involvement, home-based involvement, and academic socialization, and a six-domain conceptualization to (a) determine whether these models are replicable with a population of secondary students at risk for emotional and behavioral issues, (b) examine the measurement invariance of the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) models between samples of ninth graders in public and private schools without disabilities and ninth graders at risk of emotional and behavioral issues, and (c) determine whether parental involvement differs due to at-risk status. The six-factor model fit the data closest for both groups and was invariant between groups, suggesting this framework is appropriate for a variety of student groups. There were significantly lower levels of parental involvement in four of the six domains for the ninth-grade students at risk in comparison with students in the general population without disabilities.

Psychometric properties of the 30-item Family Resource Scale (FRS) were examined in a sample of families seeking assistance for their child's behavioral difficulties (N = 300). The FRS is a measure that assesses the adequacy of family resources across several contexts including intra-family support and personal resources. Our analyses supported a modified 29-item four-factor solution ("basic needs," "extra money and time," "time for family," and "essential") compared with the seven-factor solution provided by the developers. Results showed that families' perception of their resources as adequate across all domains was associated with better family functioning and less caregiver strain. Combined, our findings suggest modifications to the existent structure of the FRS.

Given the lack of research on measurement models used to operationalize parental involvement with secondary students, the goal of this research is to examine the measurement properties of the three-domain conceptualization of parental involvement including school-based involvement, home-based involvement, and academic socialization, compared to a more nuanced six domain conceptualization school-based (1) school/parent communication, (2) attending school activities, home-based (3) home activities, (4) homework help, academic socialization, (5) parent-child communication about education, and (6) parental aspirations for child's education. When comparing the fit among the models, the six-factor model had best fit indices and indicated varied correlations among the subdomains. The six-factor model allowed for more nuanced variations among the subdomains that may be helpful when assessing parental involvement with high school students.

Background: There is a need for brief progress monitoring measures of behavioral and emotional symptoms for youth in out-of-home care. The Symptoms and Functioning Severity Scale (SFSS; Bickman et al. in Manual of the peabody treatment progress battery. Vanderbilt University, Nashville, 2010) is one measure that has clinician and youth short forms (SFSS-SFs); however, the psychometric soundness of the SFSS-SFs with youth in out-of-home care has yet to be examined. Objective: The objective was to determine if the psychometric characteristics of the clinician and youth SFSS-SFs are viable for use in out-of-home care programs. Methods: The participants included 143 youth receiving residential treatment and 52 direct care residential staff. The current study assessed internal consistency and alternate forms reliability for SFSS-SFs for youth in a residential care setting. Further, a binary classification test was completed to determine if the SFSS-SFs similarly classified youth as the SFSS full version for low- and elevated-severity. Results: The internal consistency for the clinician and youth SFSS-SFs was adequate (a = 0.75-0.82) as was the parallel forms reliability (r = 0.85-0.97). The sensitivity (0.80-0.95), specificity (0.88-0.97), and overall accuracy (0.89-0.93) for differentiating low and elevated symptom severity was acceptable. Conclusions: The clinician and youth SFSS-SFs have acceptable psychometrics and may be beneficial for progress monitoring; however, more research is needed to assess their sensitivity to change over time in out-of-home programs.

Youth in residential treatment settings often present with a complex combination of mental and physical health problems. Despite an emerging literature documenting significant associations between mental health and physical health, the relationship between these two areas of functioning has not been systematically examined in youth presenting to residential treatment. This study examines the association between youth psychopathology and physical health problems in a sample of 606 youth entering a large residential treatment program between 2003 and 2010. As a part of the intake process, youth psychopathology symptoms were assessed using the parent-report form of the Child Behavior Checklist, and youth physical health problems were assessed in a medical evaluation by a licensed child health professional. Results indicated that higher levels of youth psychopathology, particularly internalizing problems, were associated with greater risk for physical health problems and more prescription medications. Psychopathology comorbidity was also associated with physical health problems. These findings suggest an interplay between physical and mental health among youth entering residential treatment, highlighting the need for integrated assessment and intervention services that address psychological and medical needs within this population. (Contains 5 tables.)

Minimal attention has been focused on difficulties for youth in residential care regarding building healthy dating relationships, despite the significant risks to this group of adolescents. This study provided a unique opportunity to conduct focus groups with youth in residential care on issues surrounding dating relationships. The majority of youth feedback centered on the themes of desiring support developing relationship boundaries, establishing trust in relationships, understanding the consequences of sexual activity, and having real world examples regarding dating relationships. The data were examined for differences between the genders and recommendations for next steps provided. (Contains 2 tables.)

Multinomial stepwise logistic regression analyses were used to establish the most robust set of risk factors that would best predict low basic reading skills (i.e., a standard score less than 85 on the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test-Revised Basic Reading Skills cluster) of kindergarten and first-grade children at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders. Results showed that among the 11 risk factor domains considered, four were most predictive of low reading skills: demographic characteristics, childhood maladjustment, family functioning, and maternal depression. Within these four domains, the most robust set of individual risk factors were gender, history of psychiatric hospitalization, abusive to animals, and maternal depression. Results, limitations, and implications are discussed. (Contains 3 tables.)

Logistic regression analyses were used to establish the most robust set of risk factors that would best predict borderline/clinical levels of problem behavior (i.e., a t score at or above 60 on the Child Behavior Checklist Total Problem scale) of kindergarten and first-grade children at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders. Results showed that among the 11 risk factor domains considered, 5 were most predictive of borderline/clinical levels of problem behavior: externalizing behavior pattern, internalizing behavior pattern, early childhood child maladjustment, family functioning, and maternal depression. Within these 5 domains, the most robust set of individual risk factors were difficult child (i.e., temperament, parent management skills, interaction between temperament and parent management skills), destroys own toys, and maternal depression. Results, limitations, future research, and implications are discussed. (Contains 3 tables.)

We describe a comprehensive program to train emergency shelter staff in effective methods for dealing with youth who have behavioral and emotional problems; assess the degree to which staff implemented the treatment approach; measure the impact of the intervention on shelter-wide incidents such as out-of-control behavior, runaways, and violence against other youth; and examine pre-post changes in staff experiences at the shelter via anonymous surveys. Overall, the short-term shelter staff indicated adequate implementation of the intervention. The rate of youth incidents at the shelter significantly declined from pre to post assessment. Direct-care staff ratings of their satisfaction with their proficiency in behavior management and teaching youth skills increased significantly from pre to post implementation. These findings suggest that it is feasible to deliver an effective staff-training program to improve the behavior management and social skills of youth residing in short-term care facilities within the child welfare system. KEY WORDS: short-term care; youth shelters; staff development; youth behavior problems; outcomes.

The Family Empowerment Scale (FES) is one of the most widely used measures for assessing the empowerment of caregivers of youth with emotional difficulties. The purpose of this study was to examine the internal factor structure, score reliability, and convergent validity of the FES scores with caregivers of youth who had recently departed therapeutic residential care. Results indicated that the hypothesized three-factor model fit the data adequately with caveats. FES scores were reliable based on coefficient alpha and omega, and evidence of convergent validity with caregiver self-efficacy was moderate to strong. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although newly passed federal regulations mandate the provision of family-based aftercare supports for adolescents served in therapeutic residential care, very little research has been conducted to determine best practice. This efficacy and replication study compares the outcomes of youths and caregivers randomly assigned to On the Way Home (OTWH; n = 98) or traditional aftercare supports (n = 89) following discharge from therapeutic residential care (TRC). Findings were mixed. At posttest (12-months) no significant differences were found between groups on indicators of placement stability and school involvement, however, significant differences were found between groups on several indicators of caregiver empowerment and self-efficacy, with caregivers in OTWH reporting greater levels of self-efficacy and empowerment across the domains of family and community. At follow-up (21-months), moderate to large differences were found between groups on indicators of placement stability and school involvement, with odds ratios indicating youths in OTWH were 2 and 3 times more likely to be engaged in school and living in the community, respectively. Implications, limitations, and future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]