Wilderness Therapy Programs have recently become a formal alternative treatment for adolescents with emotional and behavioral disorders (Hinkle, 1999; Russell & Hendee, 1999; Russell, Hendee, & Phillips-Miller, 2000; Russell, 2003a, 2003b). Adolescent populations are unique in that traditional forms of psychotherapy, including "talk-therapies,"…

To investigate dropout from parenting programs for disruptive behavior disorders, we followed 18 clients prospectively from the beginning of a manualized treatment program to three month follow-up. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, we then compared those who dropped out of the program with those who completed it. We found that in…

Best practice in preventing severe problem behavior in schools involves implementing a continuum of effective behavior support. This continuum includes primary prevention strategies implemented with all students, secondary prevention strategies for students at-risk, and tertiary interventions for students who engage in the most severe problem…

A summer day camp program was offered to 32 students (grades 2-6) enrolled at the Transitional School (Ohio), a school for severely behaviorally handicapped students. The program was designed to maintain the positive effects of the school intervention during the summer months. Camp staff included six learning disability/behavior disorder certified…

A review of 17 studies on tutoring behaviorally disordered students revealed that tutoring can have a positive effect on both the tutor's and the tutee's academic achievement and can increase social relations of the tutoring dyad as well as attitudes toward content area. However, ancedotal reports of improved general social functioning, are not…

A study compared the effectiveness of two extinction interventions, extinction by omission and noncontingent delivery of reinforcement, to treat aggressive behavior with a 10-year-old boy. Analysis revealed that aggression was maintained by positive reinforcement in the form of attention. Noncontingent reinforcement of attention produced a more…

Out-of-home treatment for youth with conduct problems is increasing rapidly in this country. Most programs for these youth deliver treatment in a group format and commonly employ some version of a token economy. Despite widespread evidence of effectiveness, a substantial minority of treated youth fail to respond. Participants for this study were 3…

This study investigated the use of organizational learning community principles to effectively manage organizational change. Target is a pseudonym for a small public school in Southern New Jersey that has provided educational services to students with special needs since 1969. In 2004 Target began providing services to a new population of students…

Results of three forms of meta-analysis on 41 studies involving behavior disorders revealed powerful effects of treatment: both interventions targeting classroom behavior and those attributable to a behavioral orientation were somewhat more powerful and robust. Methodological flaws, however, are cited. Recommendations for solidifying the research…

A study of three children (ages 3-9) with severe problem behavior investigated alternatives to the typical application of noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) for problem behavior. Instead of using continuous access to reinforcers and extinction, the study found that an NCR schedule based on latency and NCR without extinction were more effective for…

A study examined the use of structural analysis as part of an assessment-based intervention of a 4-year-old boy whose noncompliance and aggressive behavior put him at risk for behavioral disorders and expulsion from his childcare center. The intervention was found to reduce immediately the noncompliance and aggressive behavior. (Author/CR)

The paper reports on application of a case-by-case reintegration approach to helping 10 behaviorally disordered elementary students transition into less restrictive environments. The strategy combined transenvironmental programing, student-directed interventions, and collaborative consultation. Effectiveness was suggested by the number of students…

Over the last two decades, considerable attention has been devoted to the potential of functional assessment and antecedent-based interventions, as well as to the importance of ecological validity in the evaluation of intervention practices. However, despite this increased interest, it is not clear to what degree trends in intervention research…

This study investigated school administrators' perceptions of the effectiveness of their programs serving students with emotional behavioral disorders (EBD). Specifically, the perceptions of principals in schools that provided self-contained programs were compared to the perceptions of principals in schools without self-contained programs. Also…

This study looks at the utilization of assessments on developing behavior intervention plans (BIPs) and their use in designing actual implementation for the children (elementary through high school) labeled EBD in a mid-sized district in eastern Washington. Files were reviewed to determine the types of assessments used, FBA components addressed,…