Girls face unique developmental challenges in childhood and adolescence. Compared to boys, girls tend to report more mental health problems, and they are susceptible to reproductive health risks, such as unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease. While a number of evidence-based programs have been found to be effective at reducing risk…

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of a year-long, same school classroom social skills instruction program on students' with verified Emotional Behavior Disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorders, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders perceptions of program effectiveness. This study indicated that youth can demonstrate…

In 2006, the administration of a state-run, secure juvenile correctional facility initiated an attempt to transform its institutional culture using a strength-based approach to assessment and case planning. This resulted in a rapid improvement in institutional climate. The current study revisits this setting several years later to see if those…

This study examined the perspectives of professionals and parents on part-time inclusive preschool Head Start programs that included both children with and without disabilities. The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to examine parent and teacher perspectives of inclusion on the developmental outcomes of all children and (b) to investigate…

The purpose of this comparative efficacy study was to investigate the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) and a speech-generating device (SGD) in developing requesting skills, social-communicative behavior, and speech for three elementary-age children with severe autism and little to no functional speech. Requesting was selected as the…

Many treatment programs for individuals with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) target social skills, and there is growing attention directed toward the development of specific interventions to improve social skills and social interactions in this population (Hestenes & Carroll, 2000; Strain & Hoyson, 2000). However, there are limited tools…

This study is the first social validity evaluation of the Spanish version of the "FRIENDS for Life" program with Mexican children. "FRIENDS for Life" is a cognitive-behavioral intervention aimed at increasing social and emotional competence and decreasing anxiety and depressive symptoms in children. The program is designed to…

This study explored the impact of a 4-week skills group intervention based on the principles of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) with a sample of adolescents attending a Disciplinary Alternative Education Program. This article provides a session-by-session overview of activities adapted from DBT-specified training modules of mindfulness,…

This study evaluated educationally relevant outcomes from a newly developed collaborative school-home intervention (Collaborative Life Skills Program [CLS]) for youth with attention and/or behavior problems. Participants included 17 girls and 40 boys in second through fifth grades (mean age = 8.1 years) from diverse ethnic backgrounds. CLS was…

"Kishoree Kontha" ("Adolescent Girls' Voices") was implemented in Bangladeshi villages to build the developmental assets (e.g., support from others, social competencies) of rural girls through peer education in social skills, literacy, and school learning. The Developmental Assets Profile (DAP) measured the project's impact on…

The goal of this study was to explore whether "Strong Kids" could result in improved social and emotional competence when implemented as a school-wide universal intervention. No prior studies have examined this question. This study also evaluated whether teachers could implement "Strong Kids" as it was designed and whether they…

Since autism was first described (Kanner 1943), major difficulties in social interaction have been a defining feature of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (Carter 2005). These difficulties have been identified as the single most powerful predictor of diagnostic status (Siegel 1989). Difficulties in the social arena typically remain…

Self-monitoring is a well-studied and widely used self-management skill in which a person observes and records his or her own behavior. Video feedback (VFB) occurs when an instructor videotapes a child's performances and reviews the footage with the child and potentially allows the child to score or evaluate their own behavior. A multiple-probe…

Multiple dimensions of comprehensive treatment models (CTMs) for learners with autism were evaluated in this study. The purpose of the study was to provide evaluative information upon which service providers, family members, and researchers could make decisions about model adoption, selection for a family member, or future research. Thirty CTMs…

This study aims to analyse the effects of conflict resolution and peer mediation (CRPM) training on the levels of aggression of 10-11-year-old Turkish primary school students. The study was conducted using a quasi-experimental design. The experimental group of the study included 347 students (173 girls, 174 boys), and the control group had 328…