Incredible Years Child Training (Dinosaur School)
Incredible Years Child Training (Dinosaur School) is a group-based programme for children with behavioural difficulties between the ages of 4 and 8.
The programme teaches children self-regulation and problem-solving skills in small groups with developmentally-appropriate materials. Parents and teachers are updated on session goals and are asked to help reinforce target behaviours.
The full name of the programme is ‘Incredible Years Dina Dinosaur's Social Skills and Problem Solving Curriculum (Dinosaur School)’.
EIF Programme Assessment
Child outcomes
This programme can affect outcomes for children in Active and healthy, physical and mental wellbeing.
According to the best available evidence for this programme's impact, it can achieve the following positive outcomes for children:
Supporting children's mental health and wellbeing
Improved social problem solving
based on study 1
- Statement: 1.56-point improvement on the Wally Child Social Problem-Solving Detective Game (object acquisition categories: number of different positive solutions)
- Score: 36
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
- Statement: 0.8-point improvement on the Wally Child Social Problem-Solving Detective Game
- Score: 29
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
- Statement: 0.16-point improvement on the Wally Child Social Problem-Solving Detective Game
- Score: 27
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
Improved peer interactions
based on study 1
- Statement: 4.5-point improvement on the Peer Problem-Solving-Interaction Communication-Affect Rating Coding System (total negative conflict management)
- Score: 26
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
- Statement: 0.27-point improvement on the Peer Problem-Solving-Interaction Communication-Affect Rating Coding System (ratio of positive conflict management to negative)
- Score: 33
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
Improved social competence with peers
based on study 2a
- Statement: 5.89-point improvement on a child social competence with peers composite score (including the Teacher Assessment of Social Behaviour measure, the Social Health Profile, and the Dyadic Peer Interaction Scale)
- Score: 14
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
based on study 2b
Preventing crime, violence and antisocial behaviour
Improved child behaviour
based on study 1
- Statement: 33.87-point improvement on the Eyberg Child Behaviour Inventory (Intensity scale)
- Score: 41
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
Reduced stress resulting from child behaviour
based on study 1
- Statement: 10.97-point improvement on the Parent Stress Index (Child Domain Score)
- Score: 19
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
Improved behaviour at home
based on study 2b
based on study 2a
- Statement: 7.09-point improvement on a child conduct problems at home composite score (including the Eyberg Child Behaviour Inventory, the Coders Impressions Inventory for Children, and the Dyadic Parent-Child Interaction Coding System)
- Score: 16
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
Improved behaviour at school
based on study 2b
based on study 2a
- Statement: 7.32-point improvement on a child conduct problems at school composite score (including the Teacher Assessment of Social Behaviour scale, and the MOOSES classroom observation coding system)
- Score: 16
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
Reduced negative behaviours
based on study 1
- Statement: 3.15-point improvement Parent Daily Report (Number of Target Negative Behaviours)
- Score: 40
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
- Statement: 1.5-point improvement on the Parent Daily Report (Number of negative behaviours per 24 hours)
- Score: 23
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
Improved positive behaviours
based on study 1
- Statement: 2.07-point improvement on the Parent Daily Report (Number of Target Positive Behaviours)
- Score: 22
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
- Statement: 2.15-point improvement on the Parent Daily Report (Number of positive behaviours per 24 hours)
- Score: 26
- Timeframe: Immediately after the intervention
This programme also has evidence of supporting positive outcomes for couples, parents or families that may be relevant to a commissioning decision. Please see About the evidence for more detail.
Who is it for?
The best available evidence for this programme relates to the following age-groups:
Preschool
How is it delivered?
The best available evidence for this programme relates to implementation through these delivery models:
- Group
Where is it delivered?
The best available evidence for this programme relates to its implementation in these settings:
- Children's centre or early-years setting
- Primary school
- In-patient health setting
- Out-patient health setting
How is it targeted?
The best available evidence for this programme relates to its implementation as:
- Targeted indicated
Where has it been implemented?
- Denmark
- Norway
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Ireland
Ireland provision
Ireland evaluation
About the programme
What happens during the delivery?
How is it delivered?
- Incredible Years Child Training (Dinosaur School) is delivered in 18-20 sessions of 2 hours’ duration each by 2 practitioners to groups of around 6 children.
What happens during the intervention?
- The sessions include coached play, puppet interactions, video vignettes, games, activities, and circle time. Children receive ‘chips’ for positive behaviours that are tailored to each child’s treatment goals.
- Children are given weekly homework assignments to complete with their parents. Parents are also updated regularly on session goals (in personal meetings or letters or phone calls) and given suggestions for specific behaviours to praise and reward at home.
- Teachers are updated regularly on session goals (through behaviour planning conferences, letters or phone calls) and invited to participate in behaviour planning.
What are the implementation requirements?
Who can deliver it?
- The practitioners who delivers this programme are two therapists, counsellors, psychologists, school psychologists, or teachers, one with NFQ-9/10 and one with NFQ-7/8 level qualifications.
What are the training requirements?
- The practitioners receive 18 hours of programme training.
- Booster training of practitioners is recommended.
How are the practitioners supervised?
- It is recommended that practitioners are supervised by 1 programme developer supervisors qualified to NFQ-9/10 level.
What are the systems for maintaining fidelity?
Programme fidelity is maintained through the following processes:
- Training Manual
- Other printed material
- Video or DVD training
- Face-to-face training
- Fidelity monitoring
- Review of therapy sessions via video
- Skype consultation
Is there a licensing requirement?
There is no licence required to run this programme.
How does it work? (Theory of Change)
How does it work?
- Strong emotion-regulation and problem-solving skills help children to cope with peer conflict, reduce aggressive responses, increase prosocial responses and be academically ready to learn.
- Ability to identify and recognize emotions in self and others helps children to develop emotional literacy, to problem solve and to understand and respond appropriately to social interactions with peers and adults.
- Increased problem solving skills reduce children's use of aggressive and antisocial responses to peers and adults and improve the use of prosocial solutions to problems.
- Increased school readiness skills (following directions, listening, paying attention) improve compliance and attention in school settings.
Intended outcomes
- Achieving in all areas of learning and development
- Active and healthy, physical and mental wellbeing
- Safe and protected from harm
Contact details
Jamila Reid
Incredible Years
jamilar@incredibleyears.com
About the evidence
Incredible Years Child Training (Dinosaur School)’s most rigorous evidence comes from two RCTs which were conducted in the USA.
Both studies are rigorously conducted RCTs; these studies identified statistically significant positive impact on a number of child outcomes.
This programme has evidence from at least one rigorously conducted RCT along with evidence from an additional comparison group study. Subsequently, the programme receives a 3+ rating overall.
Study 1
| Citation: | Webster -Stratton & Hammond, (1997) |
| Design: | RCT |
| Country: | United States |
| Sample: | 97 families, with children with conduct problems between 4 and 8 years old |
| Timing: | Post-test and 12 month follow up |
| Child outcomes: |
|
| Other outcomes: |
|
| Study rating: | 3 |
Webster-Stratton, C., & Hammond, M. (1997). Treating children with early-onset conduct problems: A comparison of child and parent training interventions. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 65, 93-109
Available at
http://psycnet.apa.org/record/1997-03014-011
Study design and sample
The first study is a rigorously conducted RCT.
This study involved random assignment of children to an Incredible Years Child Training (Dinosaur School) treatment group (CT), an Incredible Years Parent Training treatment group (PT), a combined Child and Parent Training treatment group (CT&PT) and a wait-list control (WLC).
This study was conducted in the US with a sample of children between the ages of 4 and 8 who had met diagnostic criteria for oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder. Of the 49 families assigned to the CT condition (n=27) or to the WLC (n=22), 51% had an annual income of $40,000 or more. 71.4% of the children were male and 87.8% were Caucasian.
Measures
Child behaviour was measured using:
Parent report
Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL), Eyberg Child Behaviour Index (ECBI) – intensity score, Parent daily report (mother report), Parent Stress Index Child Domain
Teacher report
Behar Preschool Behavior Questionnaire (PBQ)
Observational measures
WALLY child Social Problem-Solving Detective Game (WALLY), Dyadic Parent-child interactive Coding System– Revised (DPICS-R), The Peer Problem-Solving-Interaction Communication-Affect Rating System (PPS-I CARE) coding system
Findings
This study identified statistically significant positive impact on a number of child outcomes.
This includes:
Mother report
Eyberg Child Behaviour Inventory Score, Parent Stress Index, PDR (target negative behaviours, no negative per 24 hours, target positive behaviour, no positive per 24 hours)
Observational measures
WALLY (Object Acquisition: no of different solutions, Friendship Categories: no of different positive solutions & proportion of positive to negative solutions), PPSI-CARE (Total negative conflict management, Ratio of positive conflict management to negative)
Study 2a
| Citation: | Webster-Stratton et al, (2004) |
| Design: | RCT |
| Country: | United States |
| Sample: | 159 families with children with conduct problems between 4-8 years old |
| Timing: | Post-test and 12 month follow up |
| Child outcomes: | |
| Other outcomes: |
|
| Study rating: | 3 |
Webster-Stratton, C., Reid, M. J., & Hammond, M. (2004). Treating children with early-onset conduct problems: intervention outcomes for parent, child, and teacher training. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 33(1), 105-124.
Available at
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1207/S15374424JCCP3301_11
Study design and sample
The second study is a rigorously conducted RCT.
This study involved random assignment of children to an Incredible Years Child Training (Dinosaur School) group (CT); an Incredible Years parent training treatment group (PT); a parent plus teacher training group (PT+TT); a child training plus teacher training group (CT+TT); a parent, child, plus teacher training group (PT+CT+TT); and a waitlist control (WLC).
This study was conducted in the U.S. with a sample of children between the ages of 4 and 8 who had met the diagnostic criteria for oppositional defiant disorder. There were 30 families in the CT group and 26 in the control group. The average social class of these families was ‘minor professional’. 91% of the children were male and 83% were Euro-American.
Measures
Child behaviour and social competencies were measured using composite scores from subscales of a variety of different validated measures. This included:
- Child Conduct Problems at Home Composite Score
- Child Conduct Problems at School and With Peers Composite Score
- Child Social Competence With Peers Composite Score
Findings
This study identified statistically significant positive impact on a number of child outcomes. These improvements included the Child Conduct Problems at Home Composite Score, Child Conduct Problems at School and With Peers Composite Score, Child Social Competence With Peers Composite Score.
Study 2b
| Citation: | Reid et al, (2003) |
| Design: | RCT |
| Country: | United States |
| Sample: | 159 families with children with conduct problems between 4-8 years old |
| Timing: | 2 years follow up |
| Child outcomes: | |
| Other outcomes: |
|
| Study rating: | 2 |
Reid, M. J., Webster-Stratton, C., & Hammond, M. (2003). Follow-up of children who received the Incredible Years intervention for oppositional defiant disorder: Maintenance and prediction of 2-year outcome. Behavior Therapy, 34, 471-491.
Reid et al (2003) describes a follow-up paper to study 2a described above.
Families were assessed 2 years later with the same measures as study 2a. There was no active control group as the original wait-list control had received treatment. Comparisons with original pre-test scores revealed that all significant results had been maintained in the treatment group at 2 year follow up.