If a student has multiple behavior problems that escalate over time and across different settings, school-based problem-solving teams can become quickly overwhelmed, especially when educators identify "setting events" for problem behaviors that have occurred outside of school and are beyond the control of school personnel. Instead of resorting to…

Foremost in an effective curriculum for students with emotional and behavioral disorder (E/BD) is a high level of engaged time--time spent doing meaningful learning activities. Engaged time (time-on-task) is the portion of instructional time that students spend directly involved in learning activities. Walker and Severson (1992) defined the…

Nonviolent resistance (NVR) is a new training model aimed at helping parents deal effectively with their helplessness, isolation, and escalatory interactions with their children. The purpose of this study is to evaluate training in NVR with the parents of children with acute behavior problems. Seventy-three parents (41 families) were randomly…

This study examined how the mental health needs of nursing home (NH) residents with serious mental illness (SMI) are addressed. Data were collected from three sources: interviews with 84 SMI stakeholders; surveys of 206 NH staff members; and focus groups at two psychiatry specialty NHs. Four common themes emerged: placement of older adults with…

Lahey and Waldman proposed a developmental propensity model in which three dimensions of children's emotional dispositions are hypothesized to transact with the environment to influence risk for conduct disorder, heterogeneity in conduct disorder, and comorbidity with other disorders. To prepare for future tests of this model, a new measure of…

The purpose of this article is to present an intervention, the externalization of client problems, which can be used to address non-suicidal-self-injurious behavior. Specific externalization techniques are discussed, including naming the problem, letter writing, and drawing. A case application and implications for practice are presented.

This study describes the academic, social, and behavioral performance of elementary and secondary students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) receiving services in a self-contained school for students with serious behavior problems, with an emphasis on how school adjustment and problem behavior patterns predict academic performance.…

Specialist residential schools have been proposed as a coherent treatment approach for children with severe emotional and behavioural difficulties. This research aimed to explore the perspectives of a range of stakeholders regarding the benefits and disadvantages of attendance at a residential school for children with severe emotional and…

In this article, the authors briefly review the historical development and current status of services for students with emotional/behavioral disorders (E/BD) in the United States. Drawing upon that review, the authors examine disproportionality and personnel shortages and discuss present and future options for better serving this challenging…

This article provides an Australian perspective on students with emotional and behavioral disorders (E/BD). Consideration is given to the cultural issues, structure of special services, identification procedures, delivery system, and types of services provided.

In this article, the author discusses and presents seven possibilities that describe how symmetry principles are reflected in behavior analysis. First, if there are apparently no functional distinctions to be made between positive and negative reinforcement, then reinforcer effectiveness (by various measures) is invariant under a simple inversion…

Investigated were similarities and differences in the ability of 26 normally developing and 26 conduct-disordered children and adolescents to comprehend psychologically defensive behavior and the cognitive processes underlying differences due to age. Matched by cognitive level, subjects viewed vignettes depicting another child behaving…

Trends in delinquency are summarized and principles for treating violent adolescents are considered. Four major trends are identified: (1) an increase in violent crimes committed by juveniles, (2) a decrease in intact nuclear families of delinquents, (3) an increase in voluntary separation (divorce or abandonment rather than death) of parents, and…

The paper describes for elementary and secondary teachers a planned, direct, and systematic way of teaching prosocial behaviors to behaviorally disordered students. The assessment process involves a pre-teaching assessment in which students and specific instructional skills are selected and a post-teaching assessment phase which includes…

Object-relations (O-R) theory expands traditional psychoanalytic thinking beyond psychiatric hospitals and patients. This approach focuses on emotional development that leads to normal or disturbed behavior. O.R. theory is presented here to acquaint counselors with its basic concepts, its practical applications, and its impact on current…