Effects of a universal classroom behavior management program in first and second grades on young adult behavioral, psychiatric, and social outcomes.

Full Abstract

BACKGROUND:
The Good Behavior Game (GBG), a method of classroom behavior management used by teachers, was tested in first- and second-grade classrooms in 19 Baltimore City Public Schools beginning in the 1985-1986 school year. The intervention was directed at the classroom as a whole to socialize children to the student role and reduce aggressive, disruptive behaviors, confirmed antecedents of later substance abuse and dependence disorders, smoking, and antisocial personality disorder. This article reports on impact to ages 19-21.

METHODS:
In five poor to lower-middle class, mainly African American urban areas, three or four schools were matched and within each set randomly assigned to one of three conditions:
(1) GBG, (2) a curriculum-and-instruction program directed at reading achievement, or (3) the standard program. Balanced assignment of children to classrooms was made, and then, within intervention schools, classrooms and teachers were randomly assigned to intervention or control.

RESULTS:
By young adulthood significant impact was found among males, particularly those in first grade who were more aggressive, disruptive, in reduced drug and alcohol abuse/dependence disorders, regular smoking, and antisocial personality disorder. These results underline the value of a first-grade universal prevention intervention.

REPLICATION:
A replication was implemented with the next cohort of first-grade children with the same teachers during the following school year, but with diminished mentoring and monitoring of teachers. The results showed significant GBG impact for males on drug abuse/dependence disorders with some variation. For other outcomes the effects were generally smaller but in the predicted direction.

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Author information

Author/s: Kellam, Sheppard G (SG); Brown, C Hendricks (CH); Poduska, Jeanne M (JM); Ialongo, Nicholas S (NS); Wang, Wei (W); Toyinbo, Peter (P); Petras, Hanno (H); Ford, Carla (C); Windham, Amy (A); Wilcox, Holly C (HC);

Affiliation: American Institutes for Research, 921 E Fort Avenue, Suite 225, Baltimore, MD 21230, United States. skellam(-atsign-)air.org

Grants: P50 MH 38725 (Agency:United States NIMH) ; R01 MH 40859 (Agency:United States NIMH) ; R01 MH 42968 (Agency:United States NIMH) ; T32 MH018834 (Agency:United States NIMH)

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article; Multicenter Study; Randomized Controlled Trial; Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

Journal: Drug and alcohol dependence (Drug Alcohol Depend), published in Ireland. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2008-Jun; vol 95 Suppl 1 (issue ) : pp S5-S28

Dates: Created 2008/04/21; Completed 2008/07/18;

PMID: 18343607, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Achievement
Adolescent
Adult
African Continental Ancestry Group - psychology
Aggression - psychology
Antisocial Personality Disorder - prevention & control; psychology
Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders - psychology; therapy
Baltimore
Behavior Therapy - methods
Child Behavior Disorders - therapy
Curriculum
Female

Female
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Male
Poverty - psychology
Risk Factors
Schools
Sex Factors
Smoking - prevention & control; psychology
Socialization
Substance-Related Disorders - prevention & control; psychology
Urban Population

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