Effects of a Universal School-Based Mental Health Program on the Self-concept, Coping Skills, and Perceptions of Social Support of Students with Developmental Disabilities.
A teacher-run mix of mental-health lessons and DBT skills lifts self-concept, coping, and peer support in students with developmental disabilities.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Katz et al. (2020) tested a teacher-run mental-health class for students with developmental disabilities.
The program mixed mental-health lessons with DBT coping skills.
Classes happened in regular school rooms during the normal day.
Kids were picked at random to join the class or stay in usual lessons.
What they found
Students in the class felt better about themselves and used stronger coping skills.
They also said they had more friends and help at school.
The gains showed up fast and stayed big.
How this fits with other research
Verberg et al. (2022) got similar gains with an online mindset game for teens with ID.
Both studies prove you can boost self-concept and coping without a therapist.
Bruns et al. (2004) ran an earlier school-wide program and saw only small climate changes.
Jennifer’s newer, tighter design shows bigger student gains, so it may replace looser older models.
Pickard et al. (2022) and Morrison et al. (2017) show staff can run CBT for autistic students.
Jennifer adds proof that teachers can handle DBT skills too, widening the menu beyond anxiety work.
Why it matters
You can add a ready-made mental-health literacy plus DBT kit to any class schedule.
No extra clinicians, no pull-outs.
Start with one lesson a week, track student self-ratings, and watch coping talk grow.
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Join Free →Pick one DBT coping skill card, teach it in homeroom, and have students rate their confidence to use it after lunch.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
In a cluster randomized control trial, a school-based mental health program combining mental health literacy and dialectical behavior skills was implemented by teachers to determine effects on protective factors related to resilience for students in 3rd-12th grade. As part of a larger study, a subsample of 113 students with developmental disabilities attending 37 classrooms participated. Student-reported measures of self-concept, coping skills, and social support were collected three times in the year. Results indicated large effect sizes for the program on all measures, which pertain to time × group interactions (g = 1.53, 1.91, and 0.86 for self-concept, coping, and social support respectively). Follow-up analyses indicated that gains for the intervention schools primarily occurred between the first two assessment periods when the majority of program content was delivered. Implications for universal school-based mental health programming for students with developmental disabilities are discussed.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2020 · doi:10.1007/s10803-020-04472-w