Research and Results
Research Findings
Related Chapters and Articles
Research Findings
Note: For complete Review of Research PDFs for the new Middle School program as well as Pre/K and Elementary, please fill out our information form.
City-Wide Implementation in Elementary Schools
Cooke, M. B., Ford, J., Levine, J., Bourke, C., Newell, L., & Lapidus, G. (2007). The effects of city-wide implementation of "SECOND STEP" on elementary school students' prosocial and aggressive behaviors. The Journal of Primary Prevention, 28(2), 93–115.
Balancing Fidelity and Program Adaptation
Larsen, T., & Samdal, O. (2007). Implementing SECOND STEP: Balancing fidelity and program adaptation. Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation, 17(1), 1–29.
Less Adult Conflict Intervention, Improved Social Competence
Frey, K. S., Nolen, S. B., Edstrom, L. V., & Hirschstein, M. K. (2005). Effects of a school-based social-emotional competence program: Linking children's goals, attributions, and behavior. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 26, 171–200.
Researchers from Committee for Children and the University of Washington collaborated on a study that examined the effectiveness of the SECOND STEP program in helping children resolve conflicts, avoid disputes, and behave more prosocially.
Read more about this study.
Gains in Prosocial Skills and Behavior
Edwards, D., Hunt, M. H., Meyers, J., Grogg, K. R., & Jarrett, O. (2005). Acceptability and student outcomes of a violence prevention curriculum. The Journal of Primary Prevention, 26, 401–418.
Researchers investigated the effectiveness of a version of the SECOND STEP curriculum adapted to include an anti-bullying component on a sample of fourth- and fifth-grade students (N = 455). Students who received the SECOND STEP program showed significant gains in knowledge about empathy, anger management, impulse control, and bully-proofing. Report card data also revealed modest gains in prosocial behavior.
Decline in Anxious and Depressed Behavior
Schick, A., & Cierpka, M. (2005). Faustlos: Evaluation of a curriculum to prevent violence in elementary schools. Applied and Preventive Psychology, 11, 157–165.
An experimental study of the Faustlos program (German translation of the SECOND STEP program) was conducted with 716 children ages five to eight.
Read more about this study.
Increased Empathy Skills Related to Lower Levels of Aggression
McMahon, S. D., & Washburn, J. (2003). Violence prevention: An evaluation of program effects with urban African-American students. The Journal of Primary Prevention, 24(1), 43–62.
Researchers assessed 156 fifth- through eighth-grade African-American students to evaluate the impact of the SECOND STEP Middle School curriculum on their social skills knowledge, aggressive behavior, prosocial behavior, and school bonding. They found that youth who received the SECOND STEP lessons increased in their social skills knowledge and prosocial and empathy skills. Changes in empathy were also related to lower levels of aggression at post-test.
Reduced Acceptance of Social Exclusion
Van Schoiak-Edstrom, L., Frey, K. S., & Beland, K. (2002). Changing adolescents' attitudes about relational and physical aggression: An early evaluation of a school-based intervention. School Psychology Review, 31(2), 201–216.
Researchers at Committee for Children conducted a quasi-experimental evaluation of the SECOND STEP Middle School curriculum to examine its effects on sixth- and seventh-grade students' attitudes about and levels of physical and relational aggression.
Read more about this study.
Increased Social Competence
Taub, J. (2002). Evaluation of the SECOND STEP violence prevention program at a rural elementary school. School Psychology Review, 31(2), 186–200.
A quasi-experimental evaluation of the SECOND STEP curriculum was conducted with 87 third- through fifth-grade students in a rural elementary school.
Read more about this study.
Translating Research into Effective Practice
Sprague, J., Walker, H., Golly, A., White, K., Myers, D. R., & Shannon, T. (2001). Translating research into effective practice: The effects of a universal staff and student intervention on indictors of discipline and school safety. Education and Treatment of Children, 24(4), 495–511.
Increased Knowledge of Social Skills
McMahon, S. D., Washburn, J., Felix, E.D., Yakin, J., & Childrey, G. (2000). Violence prevention: Program effects on urban preschool and kindergarten children. Applied and Preventive Psychology, 9, 271–281.
McMahon and colleagues examined the effectiveness of the SECOND STEP program in improving social-skills knowledge and social competence among 109 urban low-income, ethnically diverse children in preschool and kindergarten. Teacher ratings, child reports, and observational data were used to assess children's social-skills knowledge and social competence over a year. After one year of program involvement, children demonstrated increased knowledge of social skills. Results for disruptive or problematic behavior varied by grade and measurement.
Aggression Decreases, Positive Behavior Increases
Grossman, D. C., Neckerman, H. J., Koepsell, T. D., Liu, P. Y., Asher, K. N., Beland, K., & Rivara, F. (1997). Effectiveness of a violence prevention curriculum among children in elementary school: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of the American Medical Association, 277(20), 1605–1611.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funded a one-year experimental evaluation of the SECOND STEP curriculum to examine its impact on aggression and positive social behavior among second- and third-grade students.
Read more about this study.
Middle School Pilot Evaluation
Orpinas, P., Parcel, G. S., McAlister, A., & Frankowski, R. (1995). Violence prevention in middle schools: A pilot evaluation. Journal of Adolescent Health, 17, 360–370.