Preventing Conduct Problems and Improving School Readiness: Evaluation of The Incredible Years Teacher and Child Training Programs in High-Risk Schools

Emotional self-regulation and social competence play a key role in young children's future interpersonal adjustment and academic success. Unfortunately, exposure to multiple poverty-related risks increases the odds that children will demonstrate less social and emotional competence and more behavior problems. School curricula designed to promote children's social competence, emotional regulation, and school readiness that are offered to high-risk, socioeconomically disadvantaged populations in the early years would seem a strategic prevention strategy. This randomized trial evaluated the Incredible Years (IY) social, emotion, and problem-solving curriculum (Dinosaur School) as a selective prevention program for socioeconomically disadvantaged children enrolled in Head Start, kindergarten, or first grade classrooms in schools selected because of high rates of poverty.

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