This study examined the effectiveness of the PATHS (Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies) curriculum the emotional development of school-aged children. PATHS, a school-based preventive intervention model was designed to improve children's ability to discuss and understand emotions and emotion concepts. The intervention field trial included 30 classrooms in a randomized design and involved the assessment of 286 children from grades 2 and 3. Approximately 30% of the children were in self-contained special needs classrooms, with the remainder in regular education. Teachers were trained in the intervention model and provided PATHS lessons during most of the one school year. Results indicated that the intervention was effective for both low- and high-risk (special needs) children in improving their range of vocabulary and fluency in discussing emotional experiences, their efficacy beliefs regarding the management of emotions, and their developmental understanding of some aspects of emotions. In some instances, greater improvement was shown in children with higher teacher ratings of psychopathology. Discussion focused on the nature of change school-based prevention trials.

Neuropsychology is one field that holds promise in the construction of comprehensive, developmental models for the promotion of social competence and prevention of problem behavior. Neuropsychological models of behavior suggest that children's neurological functioning affects the regulation of strong emotions, as well as performance in social, cognitive, and behavioral spheres. The current study examines the underlying neurocognitive conceptual theory of action of one social-emotional development program. Hypothesized was that inhibitory control and verbal fluency would mediate the relationship between program condition and teacher-reported externalizing and internalizing behavior problems. Participants were 318 regular education students enrolled in the second or third grade. A series of regression analyses provided empirical support for (a) the effectiveness of the PATHS Curriculum in promoting inhibitory control and verbal fluency and (b) a partial mediating role for inhibitory control in the relation between prevention condition and behavioral outcomes. Implications are that programs designed to promote social and emotional development should consider comprehensive models that attend to neurocognitive functioning and development. Lack of consideration of neurocognitive pathways to the promotion of social competence may ignore important mechanisms through which prevention affects youth outcomes. Furthermore, the findings suggest that developers of social-emotional preventions should design curricula to explicitly promote the developmental integration of executive functioning, verbal processing, and emotional awareness. Doing so may enhance prevention outcomes particularly if those preventions are implemented during a time of peak neurocognitive development.

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In this study, the authors examined the long-term effectiveness of the PATHS (Promoting Alternative THinking Strategies) curriculum on the adjustment of school-age children with special needs. The PATHS curriculum focuses on promoting children's emotional development, self-regulation, and social problem—solving skills. Eighteen special education classrooms were randomly assigned to treatment and control conditions in this controlled trial. Teachers received both training and ongoing consultation and provided PATHS to students in Grades 1 through 3. Data were collected before the intervention and for 3 successive years. Growth curve analysis indicated that the intervention reduced the rate of growth of teacher-reported internalizing and externalizing behaviors 2 years after the intervention and produced a sustained reduction in depressive symptoms reported by the children. Discussion focuses on the need for social—emotional learning (SEL) programs in special education and factors that can promote SEL among children with special needs.

This study examined individual differences in children's emotional understanding and behavioral adjustment. Participants included 220 first- and second-grade children (75% regular education, 25% special education) who were individually interviewed using the Kusche Affective Interview--Revised. Dependent measures of emotional understanding and experience included the ability to provide personal examples of 10 different emotions and the cues used for recognition of five emotions in oneself and other persons. Children were also administered the WISC-R Vocabulary, Block Design, and Coding subtests. One parent independently completed an Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist for each child. Results indicated that children who were rated as higher in behavior problems showed deficits in emotional understanding. Intellectual functioning was negatively associated with behavior problems and attenuated the effects of behavior problems on emotional understanding. Implications of the current findings for prevention and treatment programs for children with behavior problems are discussed.