Engage in practice-informed research and research-informed practice.
Apply leadership skills, decision making, and the use of technology to inform evidence-based research practice to develop, implement, evaluate, and communicate interventions across the specialization of advanced generalist practice settings.
Related Assignment Criterion:
1: Critique single-subject designs.
C4.SP.B: Apply leadership skills, decision making, and the use of technology to inform program evaluation to develop, implement, evaluate, and communicate interventions across the specialization of advanced generalist practice settings.
Related Assignment Criterion:
2: Apply critical thinking in verbal and written communication through the use of leadership and technology.
Assignment Description
After reading Whitfield's 1999 article, "Validating School Social Work," you will answer a series of questions aimed at critiquing single subject designs.
Read Whitfield's 1999 article, "Validating School Social Work: An Evaluation of a Cognitive-Behavioral Approach to Reduce School Violence," and answer the following questions in an APA-formatted document:
What was the purpose of this study?
What was the sample?
What dependent variables were studied? How were the dependent variables operationalized?
Why was a single-subject design used? What are the strengths of a single-subject design?
What were the key findings (the results of the data analysis)?
Sample Solution
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral intervention on reducing school violence. The sample consisted of three participants who exhibited violent behaviors in public middle schools. The dependent variables
studied included the frequency and number of aggressive acts, as well as suspensions and referrals for disciplinary action. These variables were operationalized using the Behavior Problem Checklist (BPC) developed by Walker & Colvin (1995).
A single-subject design was used because it is a powerful technique that allows researchers to assess behavioral changes over time while controlling for external factors that may influence outcomes. The key strengths of this method include its ability to observe behavior change within an individual (versus between groups), its focus on practical results, and its ability to replicate findings with other participants or contexts.
The key findings from this study were that all three participants showed significant reductions in aggressive acts and suspensions when exposed to cognitive-behavioral interventions. Additionally, two participants showed complete elimination of their aggressive behaviors after receiving four months' worth of intervention sessions and one participant achieved an 80% reduction in aggression after just two weeks' worth of intervention sessions. These results demonstrate the beneficial effects that cognitive-behavioral interventions can have on reducing school violence among students exhibiting problem behaviors in public middle schools.