Tamara D. Warner, Ph.D. Center Mental Health Consultant Gainesville Job Corps Center 4/28/14 *Recently renamed Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

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Resistance to hearing the other person’s point of view. Investment in proving that we are “right.” Insistence on advancing some hidden agenda. –“Respect” –“Authority” –Etc. 3 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Collaborative Problem Solving* (CPS) Developed by psychologist Dr. Ross Greene The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, Chronically Inflexible Children Lost At School: Why Our Kids with Behavioral Challenges Are Falling Through the Cracks and How We Can Help Them *Recently renamed Collaborative & Proactive Solutions How to Do It Differently 4 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Conceptual/Theoretical Underpinnings: Greene, R.W. (2011). The aggressive, explosive child. In M. Augustyn, B. Zuckerman, & E. B. Caronna (Eds.), Zuckerman and Parker Handbook of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics for Primary Care. (2nd Ed.). Baltimore: Lippincott, Williams, & Wilkins, Greene, R. W. (2010). Collaborative Problem Solving*. In R. Murrihy, A. Kidman, & T. Ollendick (Eds.), A Clinician’s Handbook of Assessing and Treating Conduct Problems in Youth. New York: Springer Publishing, Greene, R.W. (2010). Conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder. In J. Thomas & M. Hersen (Eds.), Handbook of Clinical Psychology Competencies. New York: Springer Publishing, Greene, R. W., & Doyle, A.E. (1999). Toward a transactional conceptualization of oppositional defiant disorder: Implications for treatment and assessment. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 2(3), Research: Martin, A., Krieg, H., Esposito, F., Stubbe, D., & Cardona, L. (2008). Reduction of restraint and seclusion through Collaborative Problem Solving*: A five-year, prospective inpatient study. Psychiatric Services, 59(12), CLICK HERECLICK HERE Greene, R.W., Ablon, S.A., & Martin, A. (2006). Innovations: Child Psychiatry: Use of Collaborative Problem Solving* to reduce seclusion and restraint in child and adolescent inpatient units. Psychiatric Services, 57(5), CLICK HERECLICK HERE 6 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

They want to. They are attention-seeking. They don’t care. They are not motivated. They don’t know any better. They need clear consequences. Why do challenging students behave the way they do? 7 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

A Different View 8 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

We all want attention. We all want our way. The problem arises when you do not have the skills to get what you want in an adaptive way. Old Explanation Don’t Make Sense 9 He just wants attention. He just wants his way. She’s manipulating us. She’s not motivated. He has a bad attitude. She has a mental illness. Manipulation requires a lot of skills – forethought, planning, impulse control, etc. – that most challenging students do not have. People do not choose to fail. If she has the skills to do well, why would she choose not to do well? “Bad attitudes” are the by-product of years of being misunderstood and over-punished by adults. “Mental illness” is a term to describe people with social, emotional and behavioral challenges. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Problem: In homes, schools, mental health settings, therapeutic facilities, and in the juvenile justice system -- behaviorally challenging students are still poorly understood, and treated in ways that are punitive, adversarial, reactive, unilateral, ineffective, and counterproductive. This scenario places these students at serious risk for a variety of adverse outcomes. Solution: CPS is a non-punitive, non- adversarial, proactive, collaborative, skill- building, relationship- enhancing intervention designed to teach lagging skills, durably solve problems and reduce challenging behavior. CPS operates on the principle that students do well if they can. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions 10 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Lagging Skills Unsolved Problems Unmet Expectations How to Handle Unmet Expectations The 4 Main Concepts of CPS 11 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Difficulty handling transitions, shifting from one mindset or task to another Difficulty doing things in a logical sequence or prescribed order Difficulty persisting on challenging or tedious tasks Poor sense of time Difficulty maintaining focus Difficulty considering the likely outcomes or consequences of actions (impulsive) Difficulty considering a range of solutions to a problem Difficulty expressing concerns, needs, or thoughts in words Difficulty understanding what is being said 12 Do the challenging students you know have any of the following problems? Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Difficulty managing emotional response to frustration so as to think rationally Chronic irritability and/or anxiety significantly impede capacity for problem-solving or heighten frustration Difficulty seeing the “grays”/concrete, literal, black-and-white thinking Difficulty deviating from rules, routine Difficulty handling unpredictability, ambiguity, uncertainty, novelty Difficulty shifting from original idea, plan, or solution Difficulty taking into account situational factors that would suggest the need to adjust a plan of action 13 Do the challenging students you know have any of the following problems? Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Inflexible, inaccurate interpretations/cognitive distortions or biases (e.g., “Everyone’s out to get me,” “Nobody likes me,” “You always blame me,” “It’s not fair,” “I’m stupid”) Difficulty attending to or accurately interpreting social cues/poor perception of social nuances Difficulty starting conversations, entering groups, connecting with people/lacking other basic social skills Difficulty seeking attention in appropriate ways Difficulty appreciating how his/her behavior is affecting other people Difficulty empathizing with others, appreciating another person’s perspective or point of view Difficulty appreciating how s/he is coming across or being perceived by others 14 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

In CPS, the “diagnosis” doesn’t matter 15 Most skill deficits fall in 3 areas: cognitive inflexibility, low frustration tolerance, and poor problem solving. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Lagging Skills Unsolved Problems Unmet Expectations How to Handle Unmet Expectations The 4 Main Concepts of CPS 16 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Challenging students are not challenging every minute. They’re challenging sometimes, under certain conditions, usually when the environment is demanding skills they do not have (or do not have very well) or when the environment is presenting problems they aren’t able to solve. Unsolved Problems 17 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Unsolved Problems 18 DEMANDS SKILLS Some students have the skills to handle stress; others do not. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Unsolved Problems 19 Learning how to handle high levels of stress is itself a skill. Most challenging students have not developed adequate coping skills and problem solving skills. MILD Cry, sulk, pout, whine, withdraw MODERATE Screaming, swearing, hitting, kicking, destroying property, truancy EXTREME Self-induced vomiting, cutting, drinking, using drugs, stabbing, shooting Spectrum of responses to high stress Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

A situational analysis provides valuable information about the circumstances that precipitate social, emotional and behavioral challenges. Circumstances = Unsolved Problems –Also called triggers or antecedents Examples: –Becoming unfocused (wandering around room, asking to go to the bathroom) when asked to do a writing assignment –Refusing to do an assignment when paired with a particular classmate –An adult saying “no” is not specific enough. Need to know what the adult is saying “no” to. Unsolved Problems 20 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Behind every challenging behavior is an unsolved problem or lagging skills (or both). New Lenses and a New Tool 21 Lagging skills are the why of the challenging behavior. Unsolved problems are the who, what, when and where. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Assessment of Lagging Skills and Unsolved Problems (ALSUP) Challenging episodes will now be highly predictable. Take a proactive approach to teaching skills and solving problems rather than waiting for problem behaviors to occur. Many challenging students will have many lagging skills and unsolved problems. Because you can’t fix everything at once, you will need to prioritize which skills/problems to tackle first. Assessment 22 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Changing the Lens on Challenging Behavior Challenging behavior is the result of lagging skills (students do well if they can) rather than as poor motivation (students do well if they want to). A wide range of lagging skills can set the stage for challenging behavior. Challenging behaviors usually occur in response to predictable triggers, circumstances, or unsolved problems. Summary So Far 24 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Changing the Lens on Challenging Behavior Applying “consequences” does not teach lagging skills or teach students how to solve problems. First step: identify the skills that are lacking and the unsolved problems that are precipitating challenging episodes (ALSUP). Achieve a consensus so that everyone can work together to help the student. Summary So Far 25 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Lagging Skills Unsolved Problems Unmet Expectations How to Handle Unmet Expectations The 4 Main Concepts of CPS 26 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Expectations 27 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Handling Unmet Expectations 28 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

A student is badgering one of his classmates and causing the classmate to become agitated. The agitated student has already asked the student to stop badgering her. Teacher: “Go stand in the hallway now! Come back when you’re ready to treat people kindly.” Student: “I’m not doing this assignment unless I can work with my friend.” The teacher has already made it clear that he expects the student to partner with a different student. Teacher: “You are not working with your friend. You better get with the program or I’ll have to do a negative write-up.” A student is distracting his classmates because he doesn’t understand an assignment and the teacher says, “Malcolm, let’s talk about it at my desk so we don’t disturb your classmates.” Malcolm refuses. Teacher: “If you don’t come up to my desk NOW, you’ll have to go the CSIO’s office.” 29 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Plan A greatly heightens the likelihood of challenging behavior in challenging students. –Most challenging episodes are precipitated by an adult responding to an unmet expectation using Plan A. Plan A doesn’t help us figure out why the student isn’t meeting our expectations in the first place. Plan A doesn’t teach lagging skills or durably resolve the problem giving rise to challenging behavior. Does Plan A qualify as fair, respectful, humane, or effective treatment of a student? 30 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

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Lagging Skills Unsolved Problems Unmet Expectations How to Handle Unmet Expectations The 4 Main Concepts of CPS 34 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

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If you want to help a student, you are going to need to develop a helping relationship. Goals of this helping relationship: –Help students not just better manage a given problem but to apply the learning to sort out other problems and to preventing problems from occurring in the first place. –Provide students with the tools to become more effective “self-helpers” and more responsible “agents of change” in their own lives. 37 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Helping is a working alliance, a two-way collaborative process. Helping is NOT something that teachers “do” to students; it is a process that teachers and students work through together. Helping Relationship 38 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Someone who cares Who you feel you can trust Who takes time to listen to you Who asks the right questions and truly tries to understand your concerns Who has the wisdom and know-how to help in ways that are effective and long-lasting Who involves you in the process Helping Relationship Qualities 39 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

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1.Pursue unmet expectations and ensure that your concerns about a given student’s challenges are addressed. 2.Solve the problems precipitating a student’s challenging episodes in a collaborative, mutually satisfactory and durable way. 3.Teach the student the skills s/he is lacking. 4.Reduce challenging behavior. 5.Create a helping relationship. 41 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

1.Empathy 2.Define the problem 3.Invitation 42 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

43 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions The goal of the empathy step is to achieve the best possible understanding of a student’s concern or perspective related to a given problem.

Example 1: –Adult (Empathy step, kicking off Proactive B): “I’ve noticed that you’ve been getting pretty mad at some of the other students lately.” Example 2: –Adult (Empathy step, kicking off Proactive B): “I’ve noticed that you haven’t been getting much work done lately.” 44 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions To get the information-gathering process rolling, start by making a neutral observation about a challenge or problem a student is having.

Observation must be neutral. –Requires the adult to resist the temptation to jump to biased conclusions about the student’s concerns. Example 1: (Getting mad problem) –“I guess you don’t care about hurting other students.” –“You know, you can’t always have things your own way.” Example 2: (Getting work completed problem) –“You must not be very interested in completing this program.” –“The work must be too hard for you.” 45 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

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Empathy 2.Define the Problem 3.Invitation 48 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

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Collaborative Problem Solving 50

51 The student needs to become convinced that you are just as invested in making sure her concern gets addressed as you are in making sure yours gets addressed. Key: Identifying and articulating your concern-- NOT a laundry list of things that you think a student “should” or “shouldn’t” do. The fact that the student’s behavior violates the rules or isn’t meeting your expectations is not explicit enough. It helps if it is a concern that the student can identify with: –Interfering with someone else’s learning –Making someone else feel unsafe –Making it difficult for him to be a valued member of the community Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Empathy Define the problem 3.Invitation 52 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

2 Invitation Steps Restate the 2 concerns on the table (state student’s 1 st ) –“You are really worried about X while I am concerned about Y.” Invite the student to solve the problem collaboratively. –“I wonder if there is a way …. Do you have any ideas?” Communicates that you are solving the problem together rather than you imposing a solution on him. 53 The Invitation Step is when you begin to brainstorm potential solutions. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Notice how the Invitation Step is worded: You give the student the first opportunity to think of a solution. –Let’s her know you are actually interested in her ideas. –Keeps over-eager adults, who are sure they know the best solution, from jumping in first. –You don’t have to be genius. You don’t have to have all the answers all the time. 54 “I wonder if there is a way …. Do you have any ideas?” Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

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Realistic: if you can’t reliably follow through or if the student can’t reliably follow through on the solution, then don’t agree to it. –“It would be wonderful if you could do that solution. I’m just not so sure you really can because I know that has been a struggle for you in the past. Let’s try to come up with a solution we can both do.” Mutually Satisfactory: by definition, your concern has to be addressed, too. 56 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Most challenging students are, by definition, not good problem-solvers! Most challenging students have never actually “worked through” a problem. Most challenging students have never had anyone ask them to brainstorm solutions – much less ones that can be performed reliably and are mutually satisfactory (takes into account 2 perspectives at once). 57 The Invitation Step requires the most patience and is where the most teaching occurs. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

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59 The Invitation Step begins with “I wonder if there is a way …. Do you have any ideas?” The Invitation Step ends with: “Let’s touch base about our solution in a few days [next week, etc.]. And if our solution doesn’t work, let’s talk again and make sure we come up with something that does work.” Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

60 Problem Solving is an Iterative Process Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Empathy Define the problem Invitation 61 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

CPS Review 62 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions Behind every challenging behavior is an unsolved problem or lagging skills (or both).

CPS Review 63 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions “I wonder if there is a way …. Do you have any ideas?”

CPS Final Thoughts 64 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

5 Documents/Worksheets –CPS One Page Description –Assessment of Lagging Skills and Unsolved Problems (ALSUP) –CPS Problem Solving Plan (Plan B Flowchart) –CPS Plan B Cheat Sheet –CPS Drilling Strategies Live radio program called Issues in Children’s Mental Health that airs every Monday at 11:00 am EST (September through May) Listening Library of past radio shows through iTunes Annual Summit each November in Maine CPS Resources 65 Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

CPS Resources – Videos (1) 66 –Kids Do Well If They Can –What’s Your Explanation Part 1 –What’s Your Explanation Part 2 –Being Responsive –Check Your Lenses –Three Options for Solving Problems –Plan B Part 1 –Plan B Part 2 8 videos from a workshop by Dr. Greene that cover the basics of CPS (ranging from 4:33 to 13:52) Q&list=PL96FCD5F40215BB70 (1 video in correct order) Q&list=PL96FCD5F40215BB70 These videos provide a good crash course on CPS. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

6 Plan B videos Simple Plan B at Other 5 videos at action/for-educators action/for-educators CPS Resources – Videos (2) 67 –Drilling for Information –Plan B Goes Awry (Plan A) –Plan B Goes Awry Part 2 –Plan B Goes Awry Part 3 (Adult Ingenuity) –Silence These videos are more illustrative and good for teaching. There are other videos on the website from teachers, principals, parents who use CPS. Collaborative & Proactive Solutions

Thank you for your attention. Questions and Discussion