Friday, October 28, 2011
Hall 1-2 (San Jose Convention Center)
The number of refugees worldwide was 10.5 million in 2009 and this number continues to grow (United Nations Refugee Agency, 2010). Many refugees experience trauma that has long lasting effects (Steel, Silove, Brooks, Momartin, Alzuhairi, & Susljik, 2006) and can negatively impact the behavior of children (Campbell, Szumowski, Ewing, Gluck, & Breaux, 1982). Commonly reported problems in young refugees and children exposed to war include somatic complaints, sleep problems, conduct disorder, social withdrawal, attention problems, generalized fear, overdependency, restlessness and irritability, as well as difficulties in peer relationships (Almqvist & Brandell-Forsberg, 1997; Mollica, Poole, Son, Murray, & Tor, 1997; Tousignant, Habimana, Biron, Maol, Sidoli-Leblanc, & Bendris, 1999). Refugee issues are not new, but the multitudes of refugees around the world today, including large numbers of young children (Rutter & Jones, 1998; United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR], 2000), demands that we adopt a more cohesive, systematic approach to working with refugee children and their families (Doek, van Loon, & Vlaardingerbroek, 1996). Positive Behavioral Intervention Supports (PBIS) is a research based, three-tier approach to systematically reduce negative and increase pro-social behaviors in children (Hemmeter, Fox, Jack & Broyles, 2007). This qualitative study assesses the use of PBIS for preschool aged refugee children living in a refugee resettlement community. Thirty early childhood educators (ECE) participated in semi-structured interviews to illuminate what PBIS strategies are currently being implemented and areas of need.