Early Development and Pilot Testing of a Problem-Solving Skills-Training Program for Children

Abstract

This pilot study examined the impact of a prototype problem-solving skills-training program, Making Choices, on proximal outcomes in 70 6th-grade students. Method: Students received three components of Making Choices and completed pretest and posttest measures of skills on each component. Paired-sample t tests were used to assess proximal effects. Baseline measures were used to identify four subgroups of children, and differences in skill acquisition across subgroups were assessed. Results: Students displayed significantly higher scores at posttest on measures of two of three proximal skills. Nonaggressive-accepted and aggressive-accepted students displayed stronger skills at posttest, and aggressive-rejected and nonaggressive-rejected students failed to show significant gains. Conclusions: Results provided preliminary evidence of the effectiveness of Making Choices and guided refinement of the prototype program.