I Can Problem Solve

I Can Problem Solve (ICPS), is a school-based primary prevention program that offers practical skills for helping children learn how to think through and resolve everyday conflicts. Through games and exercises, children learn interpersonal cognitive problem-solving skills including the ability to a) identify a problem, b) recognize thoughts, feelings, and motives that generate interpersonal problem situations, c) generate alternative solutions to problems, and d) consider the consequences of these solutions. Based on more than 3 decades of research, ICPS has proven effective in reducing and preventing antisocial and socially withdrawn behaviors, and in promoting positive, prosocial behaviors and peer relations. It has been successfully implemented with children ages 4 through 12, and is especially effective for young, poor, and urban students who may be at highest risk for behavioral problems and interpersonal maladjustment. ICPS is implemented through daily 20-minute lessons spanning approximately 3-4 months. During the lessons, teachers use various techniques, including games, didactic discussion, role-playing, and group interaction to teach children communication and problem solving-skills and the thought processes necessary for good decision-making. In addition to the formal lessons/games, teachers use a problem-solving style of talk—ICPS Dialoguing— when real problems arise to help children apply their newly acquired problem-solving skills in real life. ICPS also includes suggestions for integrating interpersonal concepts into the academic curriculum. ICPS can be easily adapted for use by counselors, school psychologists, or other support personnel who see individual high-risk children. The program also has a stand-alone parent component, Raising a Thinking Child, which is available in Spanish and English. This component, which shows parents how to use the ICPS program at home, was selected as an exemplary juvenile delinquency prevention program by the U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

Research Category	1, 4	n Large Scale, Externally Reviewed Research n Research Reviewed By Other Systems: - American Federation of Teachers - American Psychological Association (APA) - Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, SAMHSA - Center for the Study of Prevention of Violence (CSPV), University of Colorado - Department of Health and Human Services (DHSS), Mid-Atlantic Region - National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) - U.S. Department of Education (USDOE), Safe and Drug-Free Schools
*Design*	Experimental and Quasi-Experimental	Many research studies have been conducted; several have employed randomized experimental designs.
*Multiple Studies*	Yes	ICPS is based on more than 25 years of research; it has been field-tested extensively in urban, suburban, and rural schools, nationwide.
*Sample Size*	>50	Samples sizes for most of the published studies were within the guidelines suggested by the What Works Clearinghouse.
*Valid/Reliable Instruments*	Yes	Standardized tests have been used including the - Preschool Interpersonal Problem Solving Test - Hahnemann Preschool Behavior Rating Scale
*Results*	Yes	Differences between ICPS-trained children and control groups have been statistically significant for a variety of outcomes. Effect sizes, moreover, have been quite robust in comparisons with those typically found in the literature.
*Published*	Yes Publisher: Research Press	ICPS studies have appeared in journals such as the Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, and the American Journal of Community Psychology.
*Follow-up Data*	Yes	Follow-up studies suggest that program effects last at least one full year after children have been exposed to the ICPS intervention.
*Award*	Yes	- AFT, Effective Research-based Discipline and Violence Prevention Program - APA, Distinguished Contribution Award and Model Prevention Program Award - CSPV, Promising Violence Prevention Program - DHSS, A Top Six Prevention Program, Mid-Atlantic Region - National Mental Health Association, Lela Rowland Prevention Award - NASP, Exemplary Mental Health Program - USDOE, Safe, Disciplined, and Drug-Free Schools Promising Program - SAMHSA, Promising Substance Abuse Prevention Program

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