Research Findings: The present study explored the extent to which teachers' participation in professional development focused on children's social-emotional learning moderated the relation between self-reported burnout and teacher-child interactions. The sample included 307 Head Start preschool teachers who participated in a large randomized…

This study investigated the use of a playful, narrative, vignette-based method, called Story Magician's Play Time (SMPT), in supporting children's social-emotional reasoning and in helping children practice their social skills. We set out to examine (a) in what ways children use SMPT sessions to explore social interaction situations and to…

Insomnia is common in children with autism. Cognitive behavioral treatment for childhood insomnia may improve sleep and functioning in children with autism and their parents, but delivery involving multiple office visits limits accessibility. This single-arm pilot study tested telehealth delivery of eight-session cognitive behavioral treatment for…

Child abuse, violence against women, and the increasing occurrences of violence in schools, churches, and movie theaters are opening a debate on the possible causes and solutions in child welfare and other disciplines. Research on the detrimental effects of hitting and other forms of physical discipline has been available for over 30 years. A…

The purpose of this study was to examine the benefits, challenges, and limitations of a service-learning project designed to promote responsiveness among PK-12 preservice teachers (N=41). The service-learning included working with children (5- to 12-year-olds) at before- and after-school programs, interviewing site staff, and developing lesson…

In this pilot study, we examined whether a 2-day Emotion-Focused Family Therapy workshop strengthened parental self-efficacy, satisfaction and beliefs regarding their ability to help their children regulate emotions and reduce the children's symptoms of behavioural- or psychological difficulties. Twenty-three caretakers with 17 children (9 boys)…

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a family-centered preventive intervention, the Family Check-Up (FCU), on improving parenting skills during kindergarten and 1st grade, when children are challenged to engage in a variety of new behaviors, such as sustained attention and self-regulation of behavior in the classroom. Building…

This study explores whether a school-based group counseling program for adolescent girls, implemented at scale, can mitigate trauma-related mental health harms. In a randomized trial involving 3749 Chicago public high school girls, we find that participating in the program for 4 months induces a 22% reduction in posttraumatic stress disorder…

Despite widespread clinical use of group-based social skills training (SST) for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), there remains a lack of follow-up data, generalisation effects, common definition of social skills, and teacher report data. This study evaluated the effectiveness of an 8-week SST intervention with a play component…

School-based social and emotional learning (SEL) programmes represent a practical method of improving social and emotional well-being in students. To date, however, what is less well understood is why a theoretically sound, appropriately administered, engaging universal SEL programme may be more effective for some children over others. In the…

Disruptive behavior problems frequently emerge in the preschool years and are associated with numerous, long-term negative outcomes, including comorbid disorders. First Step is a psychosocial early intervention with substantial empirical evidence supporting its efficacy among young children (Walker et al., 2014). The present study reports on a…

This study focused on using a single case research design (SCRD) to compare the effectiveness of a child-centered group play therapy intervention to a psychoeducational group intervention (skillstreaming), and a group that received no intervention for 6 weeks. A group of 10 young children (kindergarten and Grade 1) were randomly assigned to 1 of…

Early intervention is valuable in preventing negative behavioural outcomes and promoting positive social competence in young children with externalizing behaviours. Interventions that teach social problem solving (SPS) are a promising solution, as children with behavioural difficulties often have deficits in these skills. School-based SPS…

The research focuses on the diagnostics and stimulation of socially disadvantaged children of a preschool age, which is a crucial component of inclusive education. The aim of the research was to experimentally verify through input and output orientation diagnostics the effectiveness of the stimulation program for 5 to 6 year old socially…

The "Promoting Alternative THinking Strategies (PATHS®)" program is a curriculum that aims to promote emotional and social competencies and to reduce aggression and behavior problems in elementary school children. "PATHS"® is delivered through short lessons given two to three times a week over the school year. The program is…