How Do Different Types of High School Students Respond to Schoolwide Positive Behavior Support Programs?

Abstract

In this article, the authors examined (a) the accuracy of teacher nominations in identifying (N = 178) high school students with externalizing, internalizing, comorbid, and typical behavior patterns, as well as students who were receiving special education services for high-incidence disabilities, (b) the level of treatment fidelity and access to reinforcement for the different student groups, and (c) the degree to which these different types of students responded to a schoolwide positive behavior support (SW-PBS) intervention program. Results indicated that despite receiving equal access to reinforcement, there were subtle differences regarding how different types of high school students responded to the SW-PBS. It appears that students with internalizing behavior problems were the most responsive, whereas students with comorbid concerns were the least responsive. Limitations and directions for future research are offered.

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