Family-Centered Prevention During Elementary School to Reduce Growth in Emotional and Behavior Problems

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of the Family Check-Up initiated during kindergarten on teacher-report of children’s emotional and behavior concerns in fourth grade. Participants were 57 primary caregivers, along with their children and teachers. Participants were randomized to a Family Check-Up condition or school-as-usual control condition. Teachers reported on children’s emotional and behavior concerns at kindergarten and fourth grade. Findings suggested children whose caregivers were randomized to the Family Check-Up condition outperformed children in the school-as-usual control condition on moderate and serious emotional and behavior concerns in fourth grade. Implications for aligning and integrating family-centered assessment and treatment in schools are discussed.