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Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Context for Teaching and Learning

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Development and Evaluation of the Beliefs and Attitudes for Successful Implementation in Schools for Teachers (BASIS-T)

Year: 2017
Name of Institution:
University of Minnesota
Goal: Development and Innovation
Principal Investigator:
Cook, Clayton R.
Award Amount: $1,399,848
Award Period: 3 years (07/01/2017 - 06/30/2020)
Award Number: R305A170292

Description:

Co-Principal Investigators: Lyon, Aaron; Duong, Mylien

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to iteratively refine and pilot test the feasibility and efficacy of an implementation enhancement intervention, the Beliefs and Attitudes for Successful Implementation in Schools for Teachers (BASIS-T). This intervention is intended to strategically impact key individual-level factors that facilitate teachers' implementation of evidence-based practices and programs (EBPPs) to support students' social, emotional, and behavioral skills. In schools, implementation initiatives often occur as top-down mandates without attention paid to the attitudes, beliefs, and perceived benefits of those expected to implement the specific practices embedded within EBPPs. Without addressing these individual-level barriers, the effort and costs of system-level implementation strategies — such as enacting new legislation and policies or large-scale training initiatives — are unlikely to lead to improvements in education systems and student outcomes.

Project Activities: This project included four studies designed to refine and pilot test BASIS-T. In Study 1, the team held an expert summit to review an initial version of BASIS-T and gather input to guide revisions to content and delivery for use in schools. During Study 2, the researchers gathered input from key stakeholders about BASIS-T content and activities to enhance its feasibility, acceptability, appropriateness, and likely effectiveness. In Study 3, the research team field tested BASIS-T to gather additional feedback regarding the actual implementation of the intervention. During Study 4, they carried out an experimental pilot test of BASIS-T in support of implementation of one EBPP (the Good Behavior Game [GBG]) to evaluate its impact on key process variables and implementation outcomes relative to a comparison group (GBG alone).

Key Outcomes: The main features of the BASIS-T intervention and findings from the project's pilot study are as follows:

  • The intervention addresses teachers' perceived lack of time and lack of supportive leadership through practical strategies to improve self-efficacy, a person's belief that they can accomplish tasks (Merle et al., 2022).
  • BASIS-T appears promising for increasing teachers' ratings of task self-efficacy as compared to a control group and had an immediate impact on implementation, with over 70 percent of the BASIS-T group immediately implementing the GBG post-training, as compared to 40 percent of the control group (Larson, et al., 2022).

Structured Abstract

Setting: This project took place in urban and suburban school districts in Minnesota.

Sample: Participants in this project were as follows across the four studies. In Study 1, 13 nationally known researchers, school implementation intermediaries, and district representatives participated. In Study 2, participants included 10 elementary school administrators, 11 elementary school support staff, and 13 elementary school teachers from the Midwest region of the United States. In Study 3, 22 elementary school teachers participated. In Study 4, 82 elementary teachers across 9 elementary (K–5) schools from the Midwest region of the United States participated. The 9 schools had an average enrollment of 422 students, of whom about 26% were non-White (min.: 44%, max.: 96%) and on average 44 % (min.: 14%, max.: 79%) received free and reduced lunch.

Intervention: This implementation enhancement intervention, the Beliefs and Attitudes for Successful Implementation in Schools for Teachers (BASIS-T), is informed by the theory of planned behavior and includes specific intervention components to target each element hypothesized to be necessary for behavior change: strategic education to shift attitudes regarding the value of EBPPs to support students' social and behavioral competencies; motivational interviewing to bolster the belief that changing instructional practices is possible; and social psychological influence techniques (social proofing — the idea that decisions are made in part based on the behavior of others judged to be respectable, credible and/or similar to themselves, and strategies to reduce cognitive dissonance) to change subjective norms regarding the use of EBPPs. BASIS-T is designed to be delivered immediately prior to training on any universal EBPP targeting students' social, emotional, and behavioral functioning.

 

Research Design and Methods: This project included four studies designed to refine and pilot test BASIS-T. Researchers in Study 1 held an Expert Summit to review the initial version of BASIS-T, test assumptions of the theory of change, and gather recommendations to revise BASIS-T content and delivery for use in schools. In Study 2, the team held focus groups with key stakeholders to gather feedback about BASIS-T content and activities to enhance its feasibility, acceptability, appropriateness, and likely effectiveness. During Study 3, they ran intervention demonstrations of BASIS-T with a nominated group of teachers to gather additional feedback regarding the actual implementation of the intervention. In the final year of the project, the researchers conducted Study 4, an experimental pilot test of BASIS-T in support of implementation of one EBPP (the Good Behavior Game [GBG]) to evaluate its impact on key process variables and implementation outcomes relative to a comparison group (GBG alone).

 

Control Condition: Teachers randomly assigned to the control group received training and follow-up support in the GBG.

Key Measures: The research team used surveys to assess teachers' attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. They assessed implementation of BASIS-T and the EBPP (GBG) using observations and self-report. They measured student education outcomes using school administrative data (e.g., discipline, attendance) and Direct Behavior Ratings of classroom behavior.

Data Analytic Strategy: The research team used qualitative analyses, descriptive statistics, and inferential statistics to refine the intervention and assess feasibility, fidelity, and appropriateness of BASIS-T. They used t-tests, repeated measures analyses, and multi-level modeling to examine the impact of BASIS-T on teacher implementation of the EBPP (GBG) and student education outcomes.

Related IES Projects: Initial Efficacy Trial of a Group-Based Implementation Strategy Designed to Increase Teacher Delivery of Evidence-Based Prevention Programs (R305A210241)

Products

ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here

Baker, E. A., Brewer, S. K., Owens, J. S., Cook, Clayton R., & Lyon, Aaron R. (2021). Dissemination Science in School Mental Health: A Framework for Future Research. School Mental Health, 13(4), 791–807.

Cook, C. R. (2022). Reflections on the Progress and Future Directions of Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Assessment Within a Multitiered System of Support. School Psychology Review, 51(1), 59–62.

Cook, C. R., Lyon, A. R., Locke, J., Waltz, T., & Powell, B. J. (2019). Adapting a compilation of implementation strategies to advance school-based implementation research and practice. Prevention Science, 20(6), 914–935.

Larson, M., Cook, C. R., Brewer, S. K., Pullmann, M. D., Hamlin, C., Merle, J. L., Duong, M., Gaias, L., Sullivan, M., Morrell, N., Kulkarni, T., Weeks, M., & Lyon, A. R. (2021). Examining the effects of a brief, group-based motivational implementation strategy on mechanisms of teacher behavior change. Prevention Science, 22: 722–736. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-020-01191-7

McLeod, B. D., Cook, C. R., Sutherland, K. S., Lyon, A. R., Dopp, A., Broda, M., & Beidas, R. S. (2021). A theory-informed approach to locally managed learning school systems: Integrating treatment integrity and youth mental health outcome data to promote youth mental health. School Mental Health, 1–15.

Merle, J. L., Cook, C.R., Thayer, A. J., Larson, M. F., Pauling, S., Cook, C. R., Rios, J. A., McGinnis, J. L., Sullivan, M. (2021). Investigating Strategies to Increase General Education Teachers' Adherence to Evidence-Based Practices: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of School Psychology.

Merle, J.L., Cook, C.R., Pullmann, M.D. Larson, M. F., Hamlin, C. M., Hugh, M. L., Brewer, S. K., Duong, M. T., Bose, M., and Lyon, A. R. (2022). Longitudinal Effects of a Motivationally Focused Strategy to Increase the Yield of Training and Consultation on Teachers' Adoption and Fidelity of a Universal Program. School Mental Health. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-022-09536-z

Merle, J. L., Larson, M. F., Cook, Cr. R., Brewer, S. K., Hamlin, C., Duong, M., McGinnis, J. L., Thayer, A. J., Gaias, L. M., and Lyon, A. R. (2022). A mixed-method study examining solutions to common barriers to teachers' adoption of evidence-based classroom practices. Psychology in the Schools: 1–19 https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22732