Top

Published in:

01-03-2007

Improving Young Children’s Social and Emotional Competence: A Randomized Trial of the Preschool “PATHS” Curriculum

Authors: Celene E. Domitrovich, Rebecca C. Cortes, Mark T. Greenberg

Published in: Journal of Prevention | Issue 2/2007

This paper reports the results from a randomized clinical trial evaluating an adaptation of the Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies curriculum (PATHS) for preschool-age children in Head Start. PATHS is a universal, teacher-taught social-emotional curriculum that is designed to improve children’s social competence and reduce problem behavior. Twenty classrooms in two Pennsylvania communities participated in the study. Teachers in the 10 intervention classrooms implemented weekly lessons and extension activities across a 9-month period. Child assessments and teacher and parent reports of child behavior assessments were collected at the beginning and end of the school year. Analysis of covariance was used to control for baseline differences between the groups and pretest scores on each of the outcome measures. The results suggest that after exposure to PATHS, intervention children had higher emotion knowledge skills and were rated by parents and teachers as more socially competent compared to peers. Further, teachers rated intervention children as less socially withdrawn at the end of the school year compared to controls.

Editors’ Strategic Implications:n Findings from this and other randomized clinical trials confirm that the Preschool PATHS program is clearly a promising practice for improving children’s social and emotional competence. Head Start and school programs will find these multi-informant data to be of interest as they consider a curriculum to help prepare children for school entry.

The monthly coordinator ratings of implementation quality included 13 items that were rated on a 4-point Likert scale. These ratings were part of a process evaluation. No reliability data was collected so they were no used in outcome analyses. There was some variation across teachers on the scores for each dimension. The fidelity score ranged from 2.79 to 3.96. The generalization score ranged from 2.78 to 3.93 and the openness to consultation ranged from 2.57 to 4.0. The overall means for each of these dimensions were high (3.62, 3.37, and 3.67, respectively), indicating that teachers delivered the curriculum as designed in the manual and were positively engaged with coordinators in the implementation process.

Results of the confirmatory factor analysis are available from the authors.

Alexander, K. L., Entwisle, D. R., & Dauber, S. L. (1993). First grade classroom behavior: Its short and long-term consequences for school performance. Child Development, 64, 801–814.PubMedCrossRef

Anderson, L. S., Shin, C., Fullilove, M. T., Scrimshaw, S. C., Fielding, J. E., Normand, J., et al. (2003). The effectiveness of early childhood development programs: A systematic review. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 24(suppl. 3), 32–46.PubMedCrossRef

Bierman, K. L., & Welsh, J. A. (1997). Social relationship deficits. In E. J. Mash & L. G. Terdal (Eds.), Assessment of childhood disorders (3rd edn., pp. 328–365). New York: Guilford Press.

Blair, C. (2002). School readiness: Integrating cognition and emotion in a neurobiological conceptualization of children’s functioning at school entry. American Psychologist, 57, 111–127.PubMedCrossRef

Blair, C. Zelazo, P. D., & Greenberg, M. T. (2005). The measurement of executive function in early childhood. Developmental Neuropsychology, 28, 561–571.PubMedCrossRef

Bronfenbrenner, U., & Crouter, A. C. (1983). The evolution of environmental models in developmental research. In P. H. Mussen (Series Ed.) & W. Kessen (Vol. Ed.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 1. History, theory, and methods (4th ed., pp. 357–413). New York: Wiley.

Bryant, D., Vizzard, L. H., Willoughby, M., & Kupersmidt, J. (1999). A review of interventions for preschoolers with aggressive and disruptive behavior. Early Education and Development, 10, 47–68.CrossRef

Campbell, S. B. (1995). Behavior problems in preschool children: A review of recent research. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 36(1), 113–149.PubMedCrossRef

Catalano, R. F., Berglund, M. L., Ryan, J. A. M., Lonczak, H. C., & Hawkins, J. D. (2002). Positive youth development in the United States: Research findings on evaluations of positive youth development programs. Prevention & Treatment, 5, Article 15. Retrieved October 5, 2004, from http://journals.apa.org/prevention/volume5/pre0050015a.html.

Cicchetti, D., & Toth, S. L. (1997). Transactional ecological systems in developmental psychopathology. In S. S. Luthar, J. A. Burack, D. Cicchetti, & J. R. Weisz (Eds.), Developmental psychopathology: Perspectives on adjustment, risk, and disorder (pp. 317–349). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Coie, J. D., & Dodge, K. A. (1998). Aggression and anti-social behavior. In W. Damon & N. Eisenberg (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 3. Social, emotional, and personality development (5th edn., pp. 779–862). New York: Wiley.

Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group (1999a). Initial impacts of the Fast Track prevention trial for conduct problems: I. The high-risk sample. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 67, 631–647.CrossRef

Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group (1999b). Initial impacts of the Fast Track prevention trial for conduct problems: II. Classroom effects. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 67, 648–657.CrossRef

Consortium on the School-based Promotion of Social Competence (1994). The school-based promotion of social competence: Theory, research, practice, and policy. In R. J. Haggerty, L. R. Sherrod, N. Garmezy, & M. Rutter (Eds.), Stress, risk, and resilience in children and adolescents: Processes, mechanisms, and interventions (pp. 268–316). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Cook, E. T., Greenberg, M. T., & Kusché, C. A. (1994). The relations between emotional understanding, intellectual functioning, and disruptive behavior problems in elementary school aged children. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 22, 205–219.PubMedCrossRef

Denham, S. A. (1986). Social cognition, prosocial behavior, and emotion in preschoolers: Contextual validation. Child Development, 57, 197–201.CrossRef

Denham, S. A. (1998). Emotional development in young children. New York: Guilford Press.

Denham, S. A., & Almeida, M. C. (1987). Children’s social problem-solving skills, behavioral adjustment, and interventions: A meta-analysis evaluating theory and practice. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 8, 391–409.CrossRef

Denham, S. A., & Burton, R. (1996). A socio-emotional intervention for at-risk 4-year-olds. Journal of School Psychology, 34(3), 225–245.CrossRef

Denham, S. A., Bouril, B., & Belouad, F. (1994). Preschoolers’ affect and cognition about challenging peer situations. Child Study Journal, 24(1), 1–21.

Department of Health and Human Services (1999). Mental health: A report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health.

Diamond, A., & Taylor, C. (1996). Development of an aspect of executive control: Development of the abilities to remember what I said and to ``Do as I Say, Not as I Do.'' Developmental Psychobiology, 29(4), 315–334.PubMedCrossRef

Domitrovich, C., Cortes, R. C., & Greenberg, M. T. (2001). Head Start Competence Scale Technical Report. Unpublished manuscript, Pennsylvania State University.

Domitrovich, C. E., Greenberg, M. T., Kusche, C., & Cortes, R. (1999). Manual for the Preschool PATHS Curriculum. South Deerfield, MA: Channing-Bete Company.

Dunn, L. M., & Dunn, L. M. (1997). Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.

Fantuzzo, J., Bulotsky, R., McDermott, P., Mosca, S., & Lutz, M. N. (2003). A multivariate analysis of emotional and behavioral adjustment and preschool educational outcomes. School Psychology Review, 32(2), 185–203.

Fine, S. E., Izard, C. E., Mostow, A. J., Trentacosta, C. J., & Ackerman, B. P. (2003). First grade emotion knowledge as a predictor of fifth grade self-reported internalizing behaviors in children from economically disadvantaged families. Development and Psychopathology, 15, 331– 342.PubMedCrossRef

Gagnon, C., Craig, W. M., Tremblay, R. E., Zhou, R. M., & Vitaro, F. (1995). Kindergarten predictors of boys’ stable behavior problems at the end of elementary school. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 23(6), 751–766.PubMedCrossRef

Garner, P. W., Jones, D. C., & Miner, J. L. (1994). Social competence among low-income preschoolers: Emotion socialization practices and social cognitive correlates. Child Development, 65, 622–637.PubMedCrossRef

Gilliam, W. S. (2005). Prekindergarteners left behind: Expulsion rates in State Prekindergarten systems. Unpublished manuscript, Yale University.

Gottman, J. M. (1983). How children become friends. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Greenberg, M. T., Domitrovich, C., & Bumbarger, B. (2001). The prevention of mental disorders in school-aged children: Current state of the field. Prevention & Treatment, 4, Article 1. Retrieved March 30, 2001, from http://journals.apa.org/prevention/volume4/pre0040001a.html.

Greenberg, M. T., & Kusché, C. A. (1993). Promoting social and emotional development in deaf children: The PATHS Project. Seattle: University of Washington Press.

Greenberg, M. T., & Kusché, C. A. (1998). Preventive intervention for school-aged deaf children: The PATHS Curriculum. Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 3, 49–63.PubMed

Greenberg, M. T., Kusché, C. A., Cook E. T, & Quamma, J. P. (1995). Promoting emotional competence in school-aged children: The effects of the PATHS Curriculum. Development and Psychopathology, 7, 117–136.

Greenberg, M. T., & Kusché, C. A, & Speltz, M. (1990). Emotional regulation, self-control and psychopathology: The role of relationships in early childhood. In D. Cicchetti & S. Toth (Eds.), Rochester symposium on developmental psychopathology, Vol. 2. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Greenberg, M. T., Kusché, C. A., & Speltz, M. (1991). Emotion regulation, self-control, and psychopathology. In D. Cicchetti & S. Toth (Eds.), Internalizing and externalizing expressions of dysfunction. Rochester Symposium on Developmental Psychopathology, Vol. 2 (pp. 21–55). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Halberstadt, A. G., Denham, S. A., & Dunsmore, J. C. (2001). Affective social competence. Social Development, 10, 79–119.CrossRef

Huaging Qi, C., & Kaiser, A. P. (2003). Behavior problems of preschool children from low-income families: A review of the literature. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 23, 188–216.CrossRef

Huffman, L. C., Mehlinger, S. L., Kerivan, A. S., Cavanaugh, D. A., Lippett, J., & Moyo, O. (2000). Off to a good start: Research on the risk factors for early school problems and selected federal policies affecting children’s social and emotional development and their readiness for school. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina, FPG Child Development Center.

Izard, C. E. (1977). Human emotions. New York: Plenum Press.

Izard, C., Fine, S., Schultz, D., Mostow, A., Ackerman, B., & Youngstrom, E. (2001). Emotion knowledge as a predictor of social behavior and academic competence in children at risk. Psychological Science, 12(1), 18–23.PubMedCrossRef

Izard, C. E., Trentacosta, C. J., King, K. A., & Mostow, A. J. (2004). An emotion-based prevention program for Head Start children. Early Education and Development, 15, 407–422.CrossRef

Izard, C. E., Fine, S., Schultz, D., Mostow, A., Ackerman, B., & Youngstrom, E. (2001). Emotion knowledge as a predictor of social behavior and academic competence in children at risk. Psychological Science, 12, 18–23.PubMedCrossRef

Kaiser, A. P., Cai, X., Hancock, T. P., & Foster, M. E. (2002). Teacher reported behavior problems and language delays in boys and girls enrolled in Head Start. Behavior Disorders, 28, 23–39.

Keenan, K., Shaw, D. S., Walsh, B., Delliquadri, E., & Giovannelli, J. (1997). DSM-III-R disorders in preschool children from low-income families. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolecent Psychiatry, 36(5), 620–627.

Kingston, L., & Prior, M. (1995). The development of patterns of stable, transient, and school-age onset aggressive behavior in young children. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolecent Psychiatry, 34(3), 348–358.CrossRef

Kusché, C. A. (1984). The understanding of emotion concepts by deaf children: An assessment of an affective education curriculum. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Washington.

Kusché, C. A., & Greenberg, M. T. (1994). The PATHS curriculum. South Deerfield, MA: Channing-Bete Co.

Lavigne, J. V., Arend, R., Rosenbaum, D., Binns, H. J., Christoffel, K. C., & Gibbons, R. D. (1998). Psychiatric disorders with onset in the preschool years: I. stability of diagnoses. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 37(12), 1246–1254.

Lopez, M. L., Tartullo, L. B., Forness, S. R., & Boyce, C. A. (2000). Early identification and intervention: Head Start’s response to mental health challenges. Early Education and Development, 11, 265–282.CrossRef

Luria, A. R. (1966). Higher cortical functions in man. New York: Basic Books.

Lynch, K. B., Geller, S. R., & Schmidt, M. G. (2004). Multi-year evaluation of the effectiveness of a resilience-based prevention program for young children. The Journal of Primary Prevention, 24, 335–353.CrossRef

Masten, A. S., & Coatsworth, J. D. (1998). The development of competence in favorable and unfavorable environments: Lessons from research on successful children. American Psychologist, 53, 205–220.PubMedCrossRef

McLeod, J. D., & Shanahan, M. J. (1996). Trajectories of poverty and children’s mental health. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 37(3), 207–220.PubMedCrossRef

McLoyd, V. C. (1998). Socioeconomic disadvantage and child development. American Psychologist, 53(2), 185–204.PubMedCrossRef

Merrell, K. W. (1996). Socio-emotional assessment in early childhood: The Preschool and Kindergarten Behavior Scales. Journal of Early Intervention, 20, 132–145.

Moffitt, T. E., Caspi, A., Dickson, N., Silva, P., & Stanton, W. (1996). Childhood-onset versus adolescent-onset antisocial conduct problems in males: Natural history from ages 3 to 18 years. Development and Psychopathology, 8, 399–424.CrossRef

Nelson, G., Westhues, A., & MacLeod, J. (2003). A meta-analysis of longitudinal research on preschool prevention programs for children. Prevention & Treatment, 6, Article 31. Retrieved May 11, 2005, from http://journals.apa.org/prevention/volume6/pre0060031a.html.

O’Neil, R., Welsh, M., Parke, R. D., Wang, S., & Strand, C. (1997). A longitudinal assessment of the academic correlates of early peer acceptance and rejection. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 26, 290–303.PubMedCrossRef

Piotrkowski, C. S., Collins, R. C., Knitzer, J., & Robinson, R. (1994). Strengthening mental health services in Head Start: A challenge for the 1990’s. American Psychologist, 49(2), 133– 139.PubMedCrossRef

Raver, C. C. (2002). Emotions matter: Making the case for the role of young children’s emotional development for early school readiness. Society for Research in Child Development, Social Policy Report, 16(3), 3–18.

Raver, C. C., Blackburn, E. K., Bancroft, M., & Torp, N. (1999). Relations between effective emotional self-regulation, attentional control, and low-income preschoolers’ social competence with peers. Early Education & Development, 10(3), 333–350.CrossRef

Riggs, N. R., Greenberg, M. T., Kusche, C. A., & Pentz, M. A. (2006). The mediational role of neurocognition in the behavioral outcomes of a social-emotional prevention program in elementary school students: Effects of the PATHS Curriculum. Prevention Science, 7, 91–102.PubMedCrossRef

Rimm-Kaufman, S. E., Pianta, R. C., & Cox, M. J. (2000). Teachers’ judgements of problems in the transition to kindergarten. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 12, 363–385.

Robin, A. L., Schneider, M., & Dolnick, M. (1976). The Turtle Technique: An extended case study of self control in the classroom. Psychology in the Schools, 13, 449–453.

Roid, G., & Miller, L. (1997). Examiner’s manual: Leiter International Performance Scale-Revised. Wood Dale, IL: Stoelting Co.

Rudolph, K. D., & Heller, T. l. (1997). Interpersonal problem solving, external behavior, and social competence in preschoolers: A knowledge-performance discrepancy? Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 18, 107–118.CrossRef

Rutter, M. (1987). Psychosocial resilience and protective mechanisms. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 57(3), 316–331.PubMedCrossRef

Saarni, C. (1999). The development of emotional competence. New York: Guilford Press.

Schultz, D., Izard, C. E., & Ackerman, B. P. (2000). Children’s anger attribution bias: Relations to family environment and social adjustment. Social Development, 9, 284–301.CrossRef

Schultz, D., Izard, C. E., Ackerman, B. P., & Youngstrom, E. A. (2001). Emotion knowledge in economically disadvantaged children: Self-regulatory antecedents and relations to social difficulties and withdrawal. Development & Psychopathology, 13, 53–67.CrossRef

Shields, A., Dickstein, S., Seifer, R., Guisti, L., Magee, K., & Spritz, B. (2001). Emotional competence and early school adjustment: A study of preschoolers at risk. Early Education and Development, 12(1), 73–96.CrossRef

Shure, M. B. (1992). I Can Problem Solve (ICPS). An interpersonal cognitive problem solving program (preschool). Champaign, IL: Research Press.

Shure, M. B., & Spivak, G. (1982). Interpersonal cognitive problem solving in young children: A cognitive approach to prevention. American Journal of Community Psychology, 10, 341–356.PubMedCrossRef

Sinclair, E., Del’Homme, M, & Gonzalea, M. (1993). Systematic screening for preschool behavioral disorders. Behavior Disorders, 19, 177–188.

Speltz, M. L., DeKlyen, M., Calderon, R., Greenberg, M. T., & Fisher, P. A. (1999). Neuropsychological characteristics and test behaviors of boys with early onset conduct problems. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 108, 315–325.PubMedCrossRef

Sroufe, A. (2000). Early relationships and the development of children. Infant Mental Health Journal, 21, 67–74.CrossRef

Stoolmiller, M., Eddy, M. J., & Reid, J. B. (2000). Detecting and describing preventive intervention effects in a universal school-based randomized trial targeting delinquent and violent youth. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68, 296–306.PubMedCrossRef

Stormshak, E. A., Kaminski, R. A., & Goodman, M. R. (2002). Enhancing the parenting skills of Head Start families during the transition to kindergarten. Prevention Science, 3(3), 223–234.PubMedCrossRef

Webster-Stratton, C. (1998). Preventing conduct problems in Head Start children: Strengthening parenting competencies. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66, 715–730.PubMedCrossRef

Webster-Stratton, C., & Hammond, M. (1998). Conduct problems and level of social competence in Head Start children: Prevalence, pervasiveness, and associated risk factors. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 1(2), 101–124.PubMedCrossRef

Webster-Stratton, C., & Reid, J. (2004). Strengthening social and emotional competence in young children: The foundation for early school readiness and success. Infants and Young Children, 17, 96–113.CrossRef

Weissberg, R. P., & Greenberg, M. T. (1998). School and community competence-enhancement and prevention programs. In I. Siegel & A. Renninger (Vol. Eds.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 4. Child psychology in practice (5th edn.). New York: J. Wiley.

Yoshikawa, H., & Knitzer, J. (1997). Lessons from the field: Head Start mental health strategies to meet changing needs. New York: National Center for Children in Poverty.

Youngstrom, E., Wolpaw, J., Kogos, J., Schoff, K., Ackerman, B., & Izard, C. (2000). Interpersonal problem solving in preschool and first grade: Developmental change and ecological validity. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 29(4), 589–602.PubMedCrossRef

Title: Improving Young Children’s Social and Emotional Competence: A Randomized Trial of the Preschool “PATHS” Curriculum
Authors: Celene E. Domitrovich
Rebecca C. Cortes
Mark T. Greenberg
Publication date: 01-03-2007
Publisher: Kluwer Academic Publishers-Plenum Publishers
Published in: Journal of Prevention / Issue 2/2007
Print ISSN: 2731-5533
Electronic ISSN: 2731-5541
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10935-007-0081-0

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Improving Young Children’s Social and Emotional Competence: A Randomized Trial of the Preschool “PATHS” Curriculum

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 2/2007

Effect of Workplace Laughter Groups on Personal Efficacy Beliefs

Using Technology to Enhance Prevention Services for Children in Primary Care

Remembrance of Things Past

Altering Key Characteristics of a Disseminated Effective Behavioral Intervention for HIV Positive Adults: The “Healthy Relationships” Experience

Editorial—I Believe in Prevention

The Effects of City-Wide Implementation of “Second Step” on Elementary School Students’ Prosocial and Aggressive Behaviors