Can School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) improve adolescents' perceptions of school climate?

Abstract

As school climate plays a key role in adolescents' academic and socio-emotional outcomes, interventions that can enhance this climate are of major interest. In considering research on practices linked to a positive school climate, School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) is a promising approach. To date, most SWPBIS studies have been conducted in English-speaking countries and have been based primarily on adults' perceptions or reports (e.g., suspension rates, office discipline referrals). There is a dearth of research on the effectiveness of SWPBIS among adolescents in different cultural contexts. Moreover, little is known about its propensity to influence adolescents' perceptions of school climate dimensions. The present study examined the effects of SWPBIS on different dimensions of school climate as perceived by French adolescents enrolled in Grades 6–9. An experimental effectiveness study was conducted among 84 grades from 21 middle schools. Multilevel analyses were conducted on data from a sample of 6765 adolescents (Mage = 12.3 years, SD = 1.23; 51% girls) from 40 control and 44 intervention grades, controlling for grade-level school climate dimensions at baseline. The results suggest that SWPBIS had a positive effect on educational, safety, and teacher-student school climate dimensions. No effects were found on belonging, fairness, and between-students school climate dimensions. The findings suggest that SWPBIS had a positive effect on adolescents' perceptions of three school climate dimensions regardless of their initial perception levels. These results may provide future directions for school teams, researchers, and policymakers interested in ways to improve school climate.