Academic and Behavioral Difficulties at School: Introduction to the Special Issue

Abstract

* Managing problem behaviors at school is an ongoing reality for many classroom teachers. Prevalence rates in the United States for problem behaviors range between 10% and 30% (Lavigne et al., 1996; Qi & Kaiser, 2003; West et al., 2000). In the United Kingdom, rates have ranged between 10% and 15% (Emerson etal., 2001), with 92% of respondents reporting that student behavior has worsened during their career (Teacher Support Network Behavior Survey, 2010). Teachers encounter disrespectful conduct, classroom disruptive behaviors, and discipline problems on an increasing basis (Watkins, Mauthner, Hewitt, Epstein, & Leonard, 2007) as well as have to manage student inattention, restlessness, and, increasingly, mobile device use (Seidman, 2005). Almost 90% of violence reported in U.S. schools involves violence between students; acts of physical aggression account for about 40% of these incidences. Consequently, understanding why these behaviors are occurring, as well as identifying what teachers and schools can do to effectively address problem behaviors, is of great importance for the students and society generally. This is because chronic problem behaviors that are untreated can result in increasing socioemotional maladjustment (Campbell, 1995; Campbell & Ewing, 1990; Dodge, 1993), as well as delinquency, school dropout, gang membership, and many other negative outcomes (Dunlap et al., 2006; Wagner & Cameto, 2004). For example, early behavioral problems also increase the risk for later substance abuse or need for mental health services (Bullis & Yovanoff, 2006; Walker, Ramsey, & Gresham, 2004; Walker & Rankin, 1983).Currently, however, there is an incomplete understanding about what problem behaviors exactly are and how they might be prevented or reduced (Dunlap et al., 2006). Part of that problem lies with the definition of normal versus deviant behavior, particularly across children's development (Smith & Fox, 2003), as well as how teachers might be trained to better identify and manage problem behaviors. Thus, a better understanding of the causes of problem behaviors in school contexts should help increase the capacity of teachers to positively influence an individual student's learning, classroom functioning, and peer-topeer relationships and, over time, the student's capacity to productively contribute to society.Problem behaviors are often characterized as those behaviors that interfere with learning and that are harmful or place a person at risk for continued problems in school or in society generally. Smith and Fox (2003) added that the behaviors should repeatedly interfere with school-based learning and, if of sufficient intensity, might subsequently be classified as serious emotional disturbance (SED; Kauffman, Cullinan, & Epstein, 1987). Others have added the elements of cultural appropriateness, intensity, and duration that affect safety. Emerson et al. (1987) argued that a problem behavior isbehavior of such intensity, frequency and duration that the physical safety of the person or others is likely to be placed in serious jeopardy or behavior which is likely to seriously limit or delay access to and use of ordinary facilities, (p. 166)Preventing and reducing problem behaviors at school requires accounting for their multivariate causes and complexity. The problem behaviors confronting a teacher might be the result of a wide array of factors. Examples include bullying, victimization, or other negative peer-to-peer interactions; poverty; family dysfunction; ineffective or overly punitive classroom management; psychiatric problems; or the interaction between these and additional factors, including the student's own temperament, cognitive and self-regulatory capabilities, and prior history of reading and other academic failure (e.g., Holden & Gitlesen, 2003; Lynna, Carrolla, Houghtonb, & Cobhamc, 2013). The burden of addressing problem behaviors contributes to a teacher's workload and adds stress to both the classroom teacher and the school's leadership (Axup & Gersch, 2008; Kelly, Carry, McCarthy, & Coyle, 2007). …