Current Projects
Some Recent and Current Efforts of the
Oregon Resiliency Project Research Team
Effectiveness of Anti-Bullying Programs
We recently conducted a systematic evaluation of intervention studies aimed at reducing bullying behavior in school settings. Using meta-analytic methods, we consolidated data from the studies we located, to determine the strength and direction of the study effects. The manuscript is "in press" in School Psychology Quarterly, and we will make it available online after it is published.
Review of Literature on Relational Aggression
The construct of relational aggression--aggressive acts that are verbal or social rather than physical in nature--has become a huge area of interest in education and psychology. Popular books like Odd Girl Out, and popular movies such as Mean Girls are evidence of the widespread interest in this topic among the general public. However, we have found that some of the generalizations on this topic are essentially myths. We have recently completed an extensive synthesis of the research literature on this topic, with a specific focus on school-based applications. It was published in the journal Psychology in the Schools, in 2006. Go to the publications page to access this article.
Adaptation of Social-Emotional Learning Programs for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Groups
As the U.S. becomes increasingly pluralistic and culturally diverse, there is a strong need to study the development and implementation of education and mental health programs for the efficacy across cultural groups. During the past few years, it has become obvious that a curriculum, intervention strategy, or assessment tool developed and validated for use within one particular cultural context may not necessarily be effective for use in other contexts. Team members have been studying the process of making appropriate modifications and adaptations of social and emotional learning programs in this manner. Our first major project was an adaptation of Strong Teens for use with Spanish speaking Latino/a immigrant students, and to evaluate its efficacy in reducing acculturation stress with this population. This study was Sara Castro-Olivo's doctoral dissertation, and the entire document is available as a PDF file on the "research" page of the Strong Kids website.
Research on Effectiveness/Impact of Strong Start, Strong Kids and Strong Teens
One of our primary research efforts since the inception of ORP has been to scientifically evaluate the efficacy and effectiveness of our Strong Start, Strong Kids and Strong Teens social-emotional learning curricula. The initial studies we have conducted to date all indicate that these curricula tend to significantly increase participants knowledge of critical social-emotional and coping skills, and that teachers and students alike view the programs very positively. Our research has also shown many other interesting results, such as decreased social-emotional problem symptoms after exposure to the curricula, high rates of teacher fidelity to the curriculum design, and psychometric aspects of the unique measures we have developed. We are continuing our research efforts in this area, focusing on specific populations of interest, the impact of variations in the curriculum delivery process, optimum use of consultation support, and other aspects. Our research reports are posted on the "Research" page of the Strong Kids website, and we will new studies as they are completed.
Strength-Based Assessment of Social-Emotional Functioning
Our latest effort is a project to develop, refine, validate, and disseminate new self-report assessment tools. The Social and Emotional Assets and Resiliency Scales (SEARS-A and SEARS-C) are currently under development, and differ from the majority of self-report measures for youths because they are focused on wellness, resiliency, and strength. We hope to have basic normative data in place by late 2008. For more information, go to the Strong Kids website, and click on the "Assessment Tools" link.
