Abstract
The effects of a school-based social-emotional and character development program, Positive Action, on the developmental trajectory of social-emotional and character-related behaviors was evaluated using data from three school-based randomized trials in elementary schools. Results come from 1) 4 years of data from students in 20 Hawai’i schools, 2) 3 years of data from students in 14 schools in Chicago and 3) 3 years of data from students in 8 schools in a southeastern state. Random intercept, multilevel, growth-curve analyses showed that students in both control and Positive Action schools exhibited a general decline in the number of positive behaviors associated with social-emotional and character development that were endorsed. However, the Positive Action intervention significantly reduced these declines in all three trials. Taken together, these analyses 1) give insight into the normative trajectory of behaviors associated with social-emotional and character development and 2) provide evidence for the effectiveness of Positive Action in helping children maintain a relatively beneficial developmental trajectory.
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Acknowledgments
This project was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01-DA13474), the Institute of Education Sciences (R305L030072) and the Department of Education (Partnerships in Character Education grants). Additionally, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (DA018760) provided financial support for the completion of the work on this manuscript. The authors would like to thankfully recognize the support and involvement of the Hawai’i, Chicago and Southeastern State school districts and the principals, administrators, teachers, staff, students and their families at the participating schools. We also thank Howard Humphreys and Jonathan Wang for help with data collection and management in the Hawai’i dataset.
Conflict of interest
The research described herein was done using the program and the training and technical support of Positive Action, Inc. Dr. Flay’s spouse holds a significant financial interest in Positive Action, Inc.
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Washburn, I.J., Acock, A., Vuchinich, S. et al. Effects of a Social-Emotional and Character Development Program on the Trajectory of Behaviors Associated with Social-Emotional and Character Development: Findings from Three Randomized Trials. Prev Sci 12, 314–323 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-011-0230-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-011-0230-9