znanstveni projekt PATHS - RASTEM

                                       

UKF 1B – Cooperability Program

Implementation of evidence-based prevention program of socio-emotional learning through science evaluation and it’s application into Croatian kindergartens and primary schools (PATHS-RASTEM)

Implementacija znanstveno utemeljenog preventivnog programa usmjerenog na socijalno-emocionalno učenje putem znanstvene evaluacije i primjene u hrvatskim vrtićima i školama (PATHS-RASTEM)

 Project leader: Professor Josipa Basic, PhD

Duration of the project: 15.06.2010. - 15.06.2012.

Leading institutions:

·              Faculty of Education and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Zagreb, Department of Behavioral Disorders, Campus Borongaj, Borongajska 83f, 10 000 Zagreb, Croatia www.erf.hr

Contact person: Professor Josipa Basic,PhD, basic@erf.hr, +385 1 2457518

·              The Prevention Research Center, Pennsylvania State University, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, S108 Henderson Building, University Park, Pennsylvania, 16802 http://www.prevention.psu.edu/

Contact person: Dr. Celene Domitrovich, PhD, cxd130@psu.edu, +1 814 865 2616

Other organizations involved:

·              Region of Istria, Department for Health and Social Care, Flanaticka 29, 52 100 Pula, p.p. 198, http://www.istra-istria.hr/index.php?id=656,

Contact person. Sonja Grozic-Zivolic, +385 52 372 155, Sonja.Grozic-  Zivolic@istra-istria.hr

·              Teaching Institute for Public Health of Primorsko-goranska County, Kresimirova 52A, 51 000 Rijeka, 051 / 358 - 777 , http://www.zzjzpgz.hr/

Contact person: Darko Rovis, +38591 132 0404, darko.rovis@zzjzpgz.hr

· City of Zagreb, City office for education, culture and sport, Zagreb, Ilica 25,   Zagreb
Contact person : Ivica Lovrić, +385 1 6100505, oks@zagreb.hr

Summary of the research project

Children’s academic and social and emotional development is intertwined.  Evidence-based promotion of social development can both reduce risk for mental disorders and for poor school achievement. The primary aim of the Croatian PATHS project is to promote social-emotional competence and reduce the risk of behavioral and mental health disorders in Croatian youth. This will be accomplished by implementing the Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS) curriculum, an evidence-based, universal intervention that is delivered by classroom teachers (Kusche & Greenberg, 1994). PATHS is classified as one of 10 national Blueprints for Violence Prevention by the Center for the Study of Violence Prevention. The curriculum has been translated into over 10 languages. Universal interventions with a strong empirical base such as PATHS are not currently available in Croatia. Given the importance of these interventions for children’s adjustment and their role in a public health approach to children’s mental health, it is important to test their acceptability and effectiveness with a Croatian population.

The first grade portion of the curriculum was translated into Croatian during 2008 and piloted in classrooms as part of a government-funded pilot study implemented in the Region of Istria by the University of Zagreb. The Crossing Borders grant would be used to expand the use of this program in Croatia, bringing it to first grade classrooms in the city of Zagreb, Primorsko-goranska county and the Region of Istria. It would also pilot its use in preschool settings. One of the strengths of the proposed project is that the impact of PATHS would be evaluated within the context of a randomized clinical trial that includes a multi-informant, multi-method measurement strategy. Exposure to PATHS is expected to result in positive outcomes for both preschool and elementary-age children. This includes improvements in children social-emotional skills reflected on direct assessments and teacher ratings. 

Given the rigorous nature of the study and its proximity to the University of Zagreb, a second aim of the Croatian PATHS project is to improve the overall quality of empirical research in child development and Prevention Science in Croatia. This will be accomplished by training PhD university students to be research assistants and mentoring university faculty on the conduct of randomized trial designs and associated activities in prevention research.

The Croatian PATHS project meets both goals of the Unity through Knowledge Fund by benefiting Croatian society and facilitating the transfer knowledge from the United States to Croatia.

Sažetak projekta                 

Primarni cilj hrvatskog PATHS projekta je promocija socijalno-emocionalne kompetencije te smanjivanje rizika za ponašajne i mentalne poremećaje kod hrvatske djece i mladih. Taj će cilj biti postignut implementacijom PATHS kurikuluma (Promoviranje alternativnih strategija mišljenja), univerzalne preventivne intervencije koja se temelji na dokazima te se provodi od strane odgajatelja i učitelja u predškolskom i školskom okruženju (Kusche & Greenberg, 1994). Riječ je o američkom preventivnom programu koji je proglašen jednim od 10 najboljih programa u klasifikaciji Blueprints for Violence Prevention by the Center for the Study of Violence Prevention. Program je preveden na više od 10 svjetskih jezika a ovakva empirijski utemeljena univerzalna intervencija do sada u Hrvatskoj nije bila dostupna. Ukoliko se u obzir uzme važnost ovakve intervencije za prilagodbu djece te javnozdravstveni pristup mentalnom zdravlju djece, vrlo je važno testirati važnost i učinkovitost ovakvog programa na hrvatskoj populaciji.

Predloženi projekt se također naslanja na dosadašnje istraživačke napore znanstvenika sa Edukacijsko-rehabilitacijskog fakulteta Sveučilišta u Zagrebu te suradnju s Penn State University-em, USA. Naime, tijekom 2008. godine preveden je kurikulum PATHS programa za prvi razred osnovnih škola  te je u sklopu znanstvenog projekta financiranog od strane MZOŠ-a pilotiran na području Istarske županije. Potpora Preko granice namjerava se koristiti za širenje ovog programa na ostatak Hrvatske tj. prenošenje u 1. razrede osnovnih škola na području Zagreba, Primorsko-goranske i Istarske županije. Isto tako, uz pomoć ove potpore osigurala bi se i primjena PATHS programa u  vrtićima. Jedna od značajki projekta ogleda se u činjenici da bi se učinak programa evaluirao u sklopu konteksta randomizirane kliničke studije koja uključuje metodu višestrukog mjerenja. Očekuje se da uključenost djece u PATHS program rezultira pozitivnim ishodima i za predškolsku i osnovnoškolsku djecu. Pozitivni ishodi uključuju poboljšanje socio-emocionalnih vještina djece.

Drugi cilj predloženog projekta odnosi se na ulaganja u kvalitetu empirijskih istraživanja u području razvoja djece te prevencijske znanosti u Hrvatskoj. Kako bi se postigao, doktorandi postdiplomskog studija Prevencijskih znanosti, ERF, će se educirati kako bi mogli obavljati uloge istraživačkih asistenata.

Centar za prevencijska istražvanja

Započela provedba PATHS-RASTEM programa

Održan stručni skup