In the past few years several major reports highlighted the gap between our knowledge of effective treatments and services currently being received by consumers. These reports agree that we know much about interventions that are effective but make little use of them to help achieve important behavioral health outcomes for children families and adults nationally. This theme is repeated in reports by the Surgeon General (United States Department of Health and Human Services 1999; 2001) the National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH] National Advisory Mental Health Council Workgroup on Child and Adolescent Mental Health Intervention Development and Deployment (2001) Bernfeld Farrington & Leschied (2001) Institute of Medicine (2001) and the Presidents New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (2003). The authors call for applied research to better understand service delivery processes and contextual factors to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of program implementation at local state and national levels. Our understanding of how to develop and evaluate evidence-based intervention programs has been furthered by on-going efforts to research and refine programs and practices to define "evidence bases" and to designate and catalogue "evidence-based programs or practices". However the factors involved in successful implementation of these programs are not as well understood. Current views of implementation are based on the scholarly foundations prepared by Pressman & Wildavskys (1973) study of policy implementation Havelock & Havelocks (1973) classic curriculum for training change agents and Rogers (1983; 1995) series of analyses of factors influencing decisions to choose a given innovation. These foundations were tested and further informed by the experience base generated by pioneering attempts to implement Fairweather Lodges and National Follow-Through education models among others. Petersilia (1990) concluded that "The ideas embodied in innovative social programs are not self-executing." Instead what is needed is an "implementation perspective on innovation--an approach that views postadoption events as crucial and focuses on the actions of those who convert it into practice as the key to success or failure". (excerpt)

Implementation research: a synthesis of the literature.

Careful reading of the literature on the psychology of criminal conduct and of prior reviews of studies of treatment effects suggests that neither criminal sanctioning without provision of rehabilitative service nor servicing without reference to clinical principles of rehabilitation will succeed in reducing recidivism. What works, in our view, is the delivery of appropriate correctional service, and appropriate service reflects three psychological principles: (1) delivery of service to higher risk cases, (2) targeting of criminogenic needs, and (3) use of styles and modes of treatment (e.g., cognitive and behavioral) that are matched with client need and learning styles. These principles were applied to studies of juvenile and adult correctional treatment, which yielded 154 phi coefficients that summarized the magnitude and direction of the impact of treatment on recidivism. The effect of appropriate correctional service (mean phi = .30) was significantly (p <.05) greater than that of unspecified correctional service (.13), and both were more effective than inappropriate service (−.06) and non-service criminal sanctioning (−.07). Service was effective within juvenile and adult corrections, in studies published before and after 1980, in randomized and nonrandomized designs, and in diversionary, community, and residential programs (albeit, attenuated in residential settings). Clinical sensitivity and a psychologically informed perspective on crime may assist in the renewed service, research, and conceptual efforts that are strongly indicated by our review.

Does correctional treatment work? a clinically relevant and psychologically informed meta-analysis *

Four principles of classification for effective rehabilitation are reviewed: risk, need, responsivity, and professional override. Many examples of Case x Treatment interactions are presented to ill...

Classification for effective rehabilitation: Rediscovering psychology.

One of the most critical issues in mental health services research is the gap between what is known about effective treatment and what is provided to consumers in routine care. Concerted efforts are required to advance implementation science and produce skilled implementation researchers. This paper seeks to advance implementation science in mental health services by over viewing the emergence of implementation as an issue for research, by addressing key issues of language and conceptualization, by presenting a heuristic skeleton model for the study of implementation processes, and by identifying the implications for research and training in this emerging field.

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Implementation Research in Mental Health Services: an Emerging Science with Conceptual, Methodological, and Training challenges

This article presents a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of anti-bullying programs in schools. Studies were included if they evaluated the effects of an anti-bullying program by comparing an intervention group who received the program with a control group who did not. Four types of research design were included: a) randomized experiments, b) intervention-control comparisons with before-and-after measures of bullying, c) other intervention-control comparisons, and d) age-cohort designs. Both published and unpublished reports were included. All volumes of 35 journals from 1983 up to the end of May 2009 were hand-searched, as were 18 electronic databases. Reports in languages other than English were also included. A total of 622 reports concerned with bullying prevention were found, and 89 of these reports (describing 53 different program evaluations) were included in our review. Of the 53 different program evaluations, 44 provided data that permitted the calculation of an effect size for bullying or victimization. The meta-analysis of these 44 evaluations showed that, overall, school-based anti-bullying programs are effective: on average, bullying decreased by 20–23% and victimization decreased by 17–20%. Program elements and intervention components that were associated with a decrease in bullying and victimization were identified, based on feedback from researchers about the coding of 40 out of 44 programs. More intensive programs were more effective, as were programs including parent meetings, firm disciplinary methods, and improved playground supervision. Work with peers was associated with an increase in victimization. It is concluded that the time is ripe to mount a new program of research on the effectiveness of anti-bullying programs based on these findings.

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Effectiveness of school-based programs to reduce bullying: a systematic and meta-analytic review

The study explored a set of potential risk and protective factors in relation to criminal activity and adjustment with a group of delinquent youths. The results indicated, first, that risk variables reflecting family relationship and parenting problems were associated with heightened rates of re-offending and lower overall adjustment. Second, the presence of protective factors relating to positive peer relations, good school achievement, positive response to authority and effective use of leisure time was associated with more positive outcomes with controls for the risk variables. Third, there was no evidence of interaction between risk and protective factors; the latter operated similarly at low and high levels of risk. These results are discussed in terms of their theoretical and applied significance.

An Investigation of Risk and Protective Factors in a Sample of Youthful Offenders

This qualitative study examined motivation, support, and retention of foster parents in a child welfare agency in nine Canadian counties. Data from nine foster parent focus groups (54 participants) were categorized into themes for four structured questions. Results showed that the most frequent motivations for being foster parents were intrinsic, altruistic motivators of wanting to make a difference in children's lives and a desire to have children in the home. The most important supports and deficits in support from their agencies were emotional support, trust and good communication with workers, respect for foster parents' abilities and opinions, and being considered part of the child-care team. Strategies to increase retention of foster parents included improving supports for fostering, providing accurate information about the foster child, and introducing foster parents to the role gradually.

The Needs of Foster Parents: A Qualitative Study of Motivation, Support, and Retention

About the Editors. List of Contributors. Series Editors' Preface. Preface. INTRODUCTION. Implementation Issues (A. Leschied, et al.). PART I: KEY ISSUES IN CORRECTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS. What Works in Correctional Intervention? Evidence and Practical Implications (J. McGuire). Evaluating the Economic Efficiency of Correctional Intervention Programs (B. Welsh & D. Farrington). Evaluating the Effectiveness of Correctional Programs: Bridging the Gap Between Research and Practice (F. Losel). PART II: IMPLEMENTING SPECIFIC PROGRAMS. A Multi-Level Perspective on the Implementation of Multisystemic Therapy (MST): Attempting Dissemination with Fidelity (D. Edwards, et al.). Aggression Replacement Training: Application and Evaluation Management (A. Goldstein & B. Glick). In Search of Program Implementation: 792 Replications of the Teaching-Family Model (D. Fixsen, et al.). The Struggle for Treatment Integrity in a "dis-integrated" Service Delivery System (G. Bernfeld). "Straight Thinking on Probation": Evidence-based Practice and the Culture of Curiosity (P. Raynor & M. Vanstone). Designing, Implementing and Managing Treatment Programs for Violent Offenders (R. Serin & D. Preston). PART III: IMPLEMENTING GENERAL PROGRAMS. Implementing Offender Classification Systems: Lessons Learned (J. Bonta, et al.). Implementation Guidelines for Correctional Programs in the "Real World" (P. Gendreau, et al.). The Role of the Consultant in Developing Effective Correctional Programs (C. Hollin). Index.

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Offender Rehabilitation in Practice: Implementing and Evaluating Effective Programs

The study of emotional intelligence (EI) shows promise in predicting educational competencies and positive life outcomes. Considering the many demands placed on teachers and the link to occupational stress, burnout, and decreased job satisfaction, EI may be foundational to developing competencies that lead to improved psychological health and teaching success and, in turn, positive student outcomes. It is argued that core factors describing teacher efficacy can be subsumed under the competencies comprising EI. This overlap in skill sets suggests that EI training may also increase teachers’ efficacy in the classroom and decrease their stress and job dissatisfaction.

Alan W. Leschied

Papers

An Investigation of Risk and Protective Factors in a Sample of Youthful Offenders

The Needs of Foster Parents: A Qualitative Study of Motivation, Support, and Retention

Offender Rehabilitation in Practice: Implementing and Evaluating Effective Programs

Teachers--the vital resource the contribution of emotional intelligence to teacher efficacy and well-being

Who is caring for our most vulnerable children? The motivation to foster in child welfare.