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Research Brief on Bullying Validates Incredible Years Programs

Research Brief on Bullying Validates Incredible Years Programs

August 27, 2015

A new research brief from Child Trends endorses the effectiveness of two evidence-based programs that address bullying, and new FPG initiatives are bringing these programs to more schools. FPG’s associate director of research, Desiree Murray, spearheads FPG’s work with the programs, each of which comprises part of The Incredible Years® Series for Parents, Children, and Teachers.

Since last September, Murray has been offering group leader training in The Incredible Years Teacher Classroom Management program through FPG’s professional development center, the PDC@FPG. This program promotes young children’s competence, enhances school readiness, and reduces classroom aggression and disruptive behaviors.

The curriculum additionally helps teachers collaborate with parents to support their school involvement and promote consistency between home and school. Teachers even report decreased stress levels after attending the training.

FPG is also launching a new study, funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, to follow The Incredible Years Dina Dinosaur Program, a small-group intervention designed to help young children with social-emotional and behavioral difficulties. As principal investigator, Murray leads a team that will evaluate the program to determine its impact on outcomes for K-2 students with self-regulation challenges.

Earlier this year, Murray was lead author on Self-Regulation and Toxic Stress: Foundations for Understanding Self-Regulation from an Applied Developmental Perspective, a report for the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation. The report defines self-regulation as “the act of managing cognition and emotion to enable goal-directed actions, such as organizing behavior, controlling impulses, and solving problems constructively.”

Not only is self-regulation critical for children’s success in early elementary school, it serves as the foundation for lifelong wellbeing—from emotional and mental health to academic achievement, physical health, and socio­economic success. The Incredible Years Dina Dinosaur Program teaches self-regulation, emotional awareness, social skills, and problem solving to groups of four to six students.

Carolyn Webster-Stratton, professor emeritus at the University of Washington, founded The Incredible Years® Series, which has been implemented widely in 15 countries. Long-term goals of the series include: “prevention of conduct disorders, academic underachievement, delinquency, violence, and drug abuse.”

The Child Trends research brief also noted the effectiveness of several other interventions in addressing bullying and mean behaviors.

More:

The Child Trends Research Brief

FPG’s new study on The Incredible Years Dina Dinosaur Program

Self-Regulation and Toxic Stress: Foundations for Understanding Self-Regulation from an Applied Developmental Perspective

The Incredible Years Teacher Classroom Management Group Leader Training through the PDC@FPG

Other offerings from The PDC@FPG

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