Capacity is a complex construct that lacks definitional clarity. Little has been done to define capacity, explicate components of capacity, or explore the development of capacity in prevention. This article represents an attempt to operationalize capacity and distinguish among types and levels of capacity as they relate to dissemination and implementation through the use of a taxonomy of capacity. The development of the taxonomy was informed by the capacity literature from two divergent models in the field: research-to-practice (RTP) models and community-centered (CC) models. While these models differ in perspective and focus, both emphasize the importance of capacity to the dissemination and sustainability of prevention innovations. Based on the review of the literature, the taxonomy differentiates the concepts of capacity among two dimensions: level (individual, organizational, and community levels) and type (general capacity and innovation-specific capacity). The proposed taxonomy can aid in understanding the concept of capacity and developing methods to support the implementation and sustainability of prevention efforts in novel settings.

While the number and scope of evidence-based health, education, and mental health services continues to grow, the movement of these practices into schools and other practice settings remains a complex and haphazard process. The purpose of this paper is to describe and present initial support for a prevention support system designed to promote high-quality implementation of whole school prevention initiatives in elementary and middle schools. The function and strategies of a school-based prevention support system are discussed, including key structures and activities undertaken to identify, select, and provide technical assistance to school personnel. Data collected over a 5 year period are presented, including evidence of successful implementation support for 5 different evidence-based programs implemented with fidelity at 12 schools and preliminary evidence of goal attainment. Findings suggest the ongoing collection of information related to organizational readiness assists in the adoption and implementation of effective practices and initiatives and provide valuable insight into the development of results-oriented approaches to prevention service delivery. Problems, progress, and lessons learned through this process are discussed to frame future research and action steps for this school-based prevention support system.

The authors describe a science communication training called “Decoding Science” and the steps taken to develop and assess program effectiveness. Evaluation is based on a triangulated framework involving feedback from graduate student trainees, faculty trainers, and ordinary citizens who are not specialists in the field. Three cohorts of graduate STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) students participated in the training in Spring 2016 ( N = 18), Fall 2016 ( N = 11), and Spring 2017 ( N = 14). Analysis of these evaluations indicates significant improvements in trainees’ communication of science. We conclude that our triangulated approach can be useful in science communication training.

This study examined friendship quality as a possible moderator of risk factors in predicting peer victimization and bullying. Children (50 boys and 49 girls, ages 10 to 13 years) reported on the quality of their best friendship, as well as their bullying and victimization tendencies. Parents reported on their child's internalizing and externalizing behaviors, in addition to bullying and victimization tendencies. Results indicated that externalizing problems were related to bullying behavior; however, friendship quality moderated this relation such that among children with externalizing behaviors, a high-quality friendship significantly attenuated bullying behavior. Internalizing problems and low friendship quality were significantly related to victimization; however, friendship quality did not moderate the relation between internalizing problems and victimization. Implications for interventions based on these findings are discussed.

School counselors must possess requisite evaluation competency to promote quality and accountability in their comprehensive counseling programs. Despite advances, the field lacks appropriate methods to measure evaluation competency. This article describes the development of a survey designed to measure evaluation competency among school counselors in Missouri and its use in the initial evaluation of a state mentoring program. Findings include initial support for the psychometric properties and four-factor structure of this survey as well as a preliminary assessment of evaluation competencies among participating school counselors. Implications focus on efforts to define, build, and measure evaluation competency in school counseling.