Readiness for Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports and School Mental Health Interconnection: Preliminary Development of a Stakeholder Survey

Abstract

Positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) and school mental health (SMH) are prominent initiatives in the United States to improve student behavior and promote mental health and wellness, led by education and mental health systems, respectively. Unfortunately, PBIS and SMH often operate separately in districts and schools, resulting in a number of missed opportunities for interconnecting programs and services and increasing their depth and quality within multitiered frameworks of prevention, support, and intervention. The current article details a necessary first step in the process of improved interconnection of these two frameworks by describing the development of a process and tool for schools/ districts to assess readiness for connecting PBIS and SMH through a blended system. Relevant literature, pilot data, and methodology are discussed, in addition to psychometric properties of the survey and future applications of this instrument for practice, research, and policy.

Pilot study for the fidelity, acceptability, and effectiveness of a PBIS program plus mental health supports in under‐resourced urban schools

“…School behavioral health staff on the PBIS leadership team should be charged with linking Tier 1 with advanced tiers of support, identifying students who could benefit from group and individualized interventions, and ensuring that all aspects of linking PBIS with mental health services are done with integrity. Instruments specifically developed to guide the program development process (Anello et al, ) and measure implementation fidelity (Splett et al, ) of PBIS with mental health supports are available. All interventions must be implemented with fidelity, given the close relationship between fidelity and child outcomes (Durlak & DuPre, ).…”

Efectos de la fidelidad de la implementación sobre los resultados de una intervención preventiva en salud mental escolar: un análisis multinivel

“…En este contexto, considerando que el compromiso de los participantes (i.e., estudiante e implementador) se ve afectado por el compromiso de los equipos directivos de la escuela, este ha comenzado a ser foco de investigaciones que buscan fortalecerlo (Anello et al, 2016). Al respecto, la evidencia ha revelado que el compromiso de los equipos directivos tiene una fuerte influencia sobre el resto de miembros de la escuela, en cuanto impacta la cultura, la estructura escolar y los canales de planificación que pueden facilitar u obstaculizar la implementación (Forman, Olin, Hoagwood, Crowe y Saka, 2009;Gregory et al, 2007;Langley, Nadeem, Kataoka, Stein y Jaycox, 2010;Sarno et al, 2014).…”

School Psychologists and School Counselors’ Perceptions of Preparation Received for the Provision of School-Based Mental Health Services

“…This is in addition to the offering of counseling services (California Association of School Psychologists [CASP], 2014). According to Anello et al (2016), PBIS functions as a layered system of interventions centered on prevention. Other methods, such as cognitive-behavioral approaches and techniques for stress reduction, have also been used at this tier level (Fazel et al, 2014).…”

“…Primary prevention approaches are put in place to encourage positive behavior for all students (Anello et al, 2016). Kutash and colleagues (2006) write that schools take on the prevention of emotional and behavioral problems and recognize potential issues that inhibit educational progress.…”

“…Tier 2: Intervention. Typically, the 15-20% of students who do not respond to Tier 1 prevention interventions and are at risk of or already demonstrating early levels of behavioral problems receive Tier 2 interventions (Anello et al, 2016). Tier 2 includes mental health services geared towards students who have one or more mental health needs but can effectively participate in many academic, social, or miscellaneous activities throughout the day (Committee on School Health, 2004).…”