Incredible Years: Parents, Teachers, and Children Training Series (IY)
The Incredible Years is a comprehensive set of curricula designed to promote social competence and prevent, reduce, and treat aggression and related conduct problems in young children (ages 4–8 years). The interventions that make up this series— parent training, teacher training, and child training — are guided by developmental theory concerning the role of multiple interacting risk and protective factors (child, family, and school) in the development of conduct problems. The overall goal of the Incredible Years series is to prevent children from developing delinquency, drug abuse, and violence problems as they enter adolescence.
Parents, teachers, and young children, ages 2–12
Designed to serve both broad and selected populations, the Incredible Years Series has been tested in several diverse communities, specifically in those with African-American and Hispanic populations. Their results show this program is very effective across diverse groups when the appropriate adaptations are made.
Incredible Years has three separate components: the Parent Training Series, the Teacher Training Series, and the Dina Dinosaur Child Training Program (Small Group Treatment version or the Classroom-based Prevention version).
The Parent Training Series strengthens parent competencies, including monitoring, positive discipline, and confidence, while fostering parent involvement in children’s school/preschool experiences. These training programs include:
- Basic Parent Training for Early Childhood (ages 2–7) and Basic Parent Training for School Age (ages 5–10): focuses on parenting skills such as how to play with children, helping children learn, effective praise and use of incentives, effective limit-setting, and strategies to handle misbehavior; a School Readiness Supplement has been added to the Basic program, with the topics of Child-directed Play and Interactive Reading.
- Advanced Parent Training (ages 4–10): emphasizes parent interpersonal skills such as effective communication skills, anger management, problem-solving between adults, and ways to give and get support.
- Supporting Your Child’s Education School Age (ages 5–10): emphasizes parenting approaches designed to promote children's academic skills such as reading skills, parental involvement in setting up predictable homework routines, and building collaborative relationships with teachers.
The Teacher Training Series is a classroom management training program for teachers, teacher aids, school psychologists, and any school personnel working with students. In addition to teaching behavior management skills, the program helps teachers promote pro-social behavior in the classroom, improve school readiness, and reduce classroom aggression. It includes skills for working collaboratively with parents to increase their school involvement.
The Dina Dinosaur Child Training Program contains either the universal prevention program for an entire classroom (Dina Dinosaur Classroom Curriculum) or a selected prevention program for young children exhibiting aggression and conduct problems (Small Group Treatment Program). The classroom curriculum, which targets children ages 3 to 8 years old, improves peer relationships and reduces aggression at home and school. The Small Group Treatment Program is implemented by counselors or therapists with small groups of children. It is ideally offered with the Parent Training Program.
It is highly recommended that those planning to use the Incredible Years intervention participate in an "authorized workshop" by a certified trainer. Workshops are offered one to three times a year in Seattle and are restricted to 25 participants. On-site workshops are available by contract (contact The Incredible Years for more information). Group leaders and mentors come from many disciplines, including counseling, social work, psychology, psychiatry, nursing, and education. Prospective leaders and mentors should have training in child development, behavior management, and group process. In order to ensure that the Incredible Years Program is delivered in faithful alignment with the program principles, there is a four-level, hierarchical certification process. The first level begins with the completion of Group Leader Training that enables one to run an Incredible Years program. After demonstrated success with their first two groups, Group Leaders may progress to Certified Group Leader (1 level up from Group Leader), Certified Group Mentor, and finally Certified Incredible Years Trainer. Only the initial group leader training is required for certification as group leader in any Incredible Years Program, but leaders are encouraged to participate in a series of workshops and mentoring sessions while continuing to lead the program. Separate training and certification processes are required for each branch of the Incredible Years program: Parent, Teacher, and Child Training. Certified trainers are available for on-going consulting. New group leaders can submit videotapes for review and feedback from the Incredible Years certified trainers as part of their certification process.
The Incredible Years
1411 Eighth Avenue
West Seattle, WA 98119
Telephone: (888) 506-3562 or (206) 285-7565
Email: incredibleyears@comcast.net
Web site: www.incredibleyears.com
Training product costs are available at the Incredible Years Web site.
Training & Technical Assistance Costs
Registration Fees for Seattle Training:
- Parent Program (three days)—$400
- Child Small Group Dina Treatment Program (two days)—$300
- Teacher Effective Classroom Management Training (two days)—$300
- Effective Classroom Management and Dina School Training (three days)—$400
If planned far enough in advance, a trainer can travel to an agency for on-site training. The cost for an on-site training costs $1,500 per day for the actual training plus travel, meals, and accommodations for the trainer (some sites will pay an additional fee for travel time). In addition to these training fees, $350 is charged to become a certified group leader. Ongoing consultation with a certified trainer costs $150 per hour-long telephone call, and $175 for a consultation day at the Incredible Years headquarters in Seattle.
Parenting Series
Six randomized control group evaluations of the parenting series were conducted by the program developer and colleagues at the University of Washington, as well as five independent replications by other investigators. All evaluations indicated significant:
- Increases in positive parental affect, such as praise, and reduced use of criticism and negative commands
- Increases in parent use of effective limit-setting , evidence by the replacement of spanking and harsh discipline with non-violent discipline techniques and increased monitoring of children
- Reductions in parental depression
- Increases in parental self-confidence
- Increases in positive family communication and problem-solving
- Reduced conduct problems in children’s interactions with parents and increases in their positive affect and compliance to parental commands
Teacher Training Series
Two randomized control group evaluations of the teacher training series by the program developer and colleagues at the University of Washington indicated significant:
- Increases in teacher use of praise and encouragement and reduced use of criticism and harsh discipline
- Increases in children's positive affect and cooperation with teachers, positive interactions with peers, school readiness and engagement with school activities
- Reductions in peer aggression in the classroom
Child Training Series
Two randomized control group evaluations of the child training series indicated significant:
- Increases in children's appropriate cognitive problem-solving strategies and more pro-social conflict management strategies with peers
- Reductions in conduct problems at home and school
The Incredible Years website has a section dedicated to evaluation tools, which includes a combination of parent reports of parenting style and their children's behavior problems, as well as teacher reports that can be completed prior to starting these programs, and again upon completion of the programs. In addition, there are program evaluations to be completed at the end of the programs. To assist in these evaluation activities, the Incredible Years program provides a variety of tools and forms.
- Blueprints Model Program
- American Youth Policy Forum Effective Program
- Communities That Care- Developmental Research and Programs Effective Program
- Mihalic & Aultman-Bettridge (2004) Exemplary Program
- Sherman et al. (1997) Effective Program
- Strengthening America's Families Exemplary 1
- Surgeon General's Report (2001) Promising 2
- Title V (OJJDP) Exemplary Program
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Hartman, R. R., Stage, S. A., & Webster-Stratton, C. (2003). A growth curve analysis of parent training outcomes: Examining the influence of child risk factors (inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity problems), parental and family risk factors. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, and Allied Disciplines, 44(3), 388-398.
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