Guide to Effective Programs
for Children and Youth

Reaching Educators, Children and Parents (RECAP)

OVERVIEW

The RECAP program was developed as part of the process of establishing a series of school-based mental health clinics during which a need was recognized for an effective program for children with concurrent internalizing and externalizing problems. It serves as both a treatment and prevention program for children having both internalizing and externalizing problems, and is designed to help children, parents and teachers address psychopathology and social functioning of children experiencing concurrent internalizing and externalizing problems. In an experimental evaluation of the program with random assignment at the school level, researchers found greater rates of improvement for children in the treatment groups than in the control for both internalizing and externalizing problems. A significant treatment impact was found for internalizing problems, and a significant prevention impact was found for externalizing problems in the treatment groups.

The pre-RECAP program was developed as an intervention to meet the need for a classroom-based program that provides pre-kindergarten teachers with the structure and materials necessary to promote young children prosocial skills development, and address pre-school children’s emotional and behavioral problems. In an experimental evaluation of the program’s impact on children’s behavior and social skills, a significant treatment impact was found for teacher reports of social skills and externalizing and internalizing behaviors, with children in the treatment condition showing greater improvement than children in the control condition. No significant treatment impacts were found for parent reports of social skills and externalizing and internalizing behaviors.

DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM

RECAP Target population: elementary school children in low-income schools with concurrent internalizing and externalizing problems

RECAP is a semi-structured, cognitive behavioral skills training program developed for elementary school children with internalizing and externalizing problems. The program lasts one academic year, and includes individual sessions; small group sessions; classroom groups with a peer group; classroom teachers, and parent group sessions. The treatment aspect of the program emphasizes reduction of the level of children’s social and psychological problems. The prevention aspect of the program focuses on preventing the development of more serious problems among children who have not been referred for mental health services. In addition, teachers are provided with in-classroom consultation on program implementation and classroom-wide behavior management by trained program consultants.

Pre-RECAP Target population: pre-school teachers

Adapted from the original RECAP program model, the pre-RECAP program was developed as an intervention to meet the need for a classroom-based program that provides teachers with the structure and materials to address pre-school children’s emotional and behavioral problems, and promotes children’s prosocial skills development. For one full academic year, trained program consultants spend one day (4-6 hours) per week in classrooms for ongoing teacher training, observation of teachers, and consultation on implementation. The program also includes a corresponding component for parents, which consists of 16 bi-weekly group meetings aimed at enhancing parenting skills and reinforcing the intervention.

EVALUATION(S) OF PROGRAM

Weiss, B., Harris, V., Catron, T., & Han, S. S. (2003). Efficacy of the RECAP intervention program for children with concurrent internalizing and externalizing problems. Journal of Counseling and Clinical Psychology, 71, 364-374.

Evaluated population: In this evaluation study, eighty-nine children from low-income schools participated. Of the total group, 63% of the children were male, with a mean age of 9.7 years. Fifty-six percent were African American and thirty-eight percent were Caucasian.

Approach: To evaluate the RECAP program’s ability to reduce psychopathology and improve the social functioning of children experiencing concurrent internalizing and externalizing problems, researchers selected three elementary schools without mental health services that served high-risk populations. Mental health assessments conducted by the school system at the end of grade 3 were used as the first step to select children to participate in the program. Any child scoring at least one standard deviation above the central tendency measure on the internalizing, externalizing and overall psychopathology scores for two of three domains was eligible for enrollment. This selection procedure was used, rather than one based on diagnostic criteria to ensure that children with a range of severity of psychopathology were included in the study, as well as to protect external generalizability. Because individual classrooms were the implementation site for the RECAP program, principals were asked to randomly distribute children across two treatment classrooms and one control classroom. The control group received no treatment.

The evaluation was conducted over one full academic year. In the beginning of the school year, three trained RECAP clinicians conducted baseline outcome assessments, which included reports from teachers, parents, peers, and self-reports. Abbreviated assessments were conducted twice during the school year for teacher- and self-report psychopathology and once for peer- and parent-report psychopathology. Follow-up post-treatment assessments were administered to all four units approximately one month before the end of the school year. Approximately, one year later, parental satisfaction surveys, and follow-up assessments were conducted with only three of the four units (parents, teachers, and children). Student academic grades and school attendance records were also collected.

Results: Analyses of the RECAP program reveal a significant treatment impact (i.e. amelioration of psychopathology) for self-reported internalizing problems, a significant prevention impact (i.e., prevention of deterioration of functioning) for teacher-reported externalizing problems, and both for teacher-reported internalizing problems in the treatment groups. Treatment was also found to decrease negative peer nominations. However, at final assessment, a substantial proportion of children were not functioning in the normal range. In addition, no significant treatment impact was found for academic grades, school attendance, or parental satisfaction.

EVALUATION(S) OF PROGRAM

Han, S. S., Catron, T., Weiss, B., & Marciel, K. K. (2005). A teacher-consulation approach to social skills training for pre-kindergarten children: Treatment model and short-term outcome effects. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 33, 681-693.

Evaluated population: In this evaluation study, 149 children (aged 4-5 years) and their parents participated. The average age of the children was 4.4 years, and 56% were female. The parent participants were primarily mothers (80%). Children attended low-income schools.

Approach: Twelve pre-kindergarten classrooms in six public schools that serve children were selected to evaluate the efficacy of the impact of the pre-RECAP program on children’s behavior and social skills. Random assignment to treatment and control conditions occurred at the school level. Three schools containing six classrooms were assigned to the treatment condition, and three schools containing six classrooms were assigned to the control condition. The control group received no treatment. Pre-treatment data on child behaviors and social skills were collected from parents and teachers in the fall, and post-treatment data were collected in the spring of the academic year. Data collection tools included interviews and questionnaires.

Results: Using pre- and post-test treatment data collected from parents and teachers during the academic year, significant treatment impacts were found for teacher reports. Compared with children in the control group, children in treatment conditions improved significantly in their teacher-rated social skills and externalizing and internalizing problems. No significant treatment impacts were found for social skills, or externalizing and internalizing problems in parent reports. According to the researchers, this inconsistent finding was not unexpected. Given the low parental attendance rate (< 5%) at the group meetings, it is unlikely that parents would have employed the intervention at home.

Note: Since teachers both implemented the treatment and provided assessments of children’s behavior, teacher ratings are not blind. This limitation may explain impacts on teacher reports but not parent reports. The authors argue, though, that few parents participated in the intervention and, thus, that there were impacts in the school but not in the home.

Note: Analyses were not designed to adjust for the effect of clustering within schools.

SOURCES FOR MORE INFORMATION

References

Program categorized in this guide according to the following:

Evaluated participant ages: pre-school children/ Program age ranges in the Guide: 4-5

Program components: school-based; parent or family component

Measured outcomes: social and emotional health and development; mental health.

Program information last updated 11/29/2007