Congruence in Parent–Teacher Communication: Implications for the Efficacy of CBC for Students With Behavioral Concerns

Note. Model-predicted teacher-reported children's social skills are shown by time point, group, and level of parent–teacher congruence averaged across time. Congruence is a continuous variable, but simple effects were evaluated at three discrete levels: high congruence (i.e., 1 SD below sample distance mean); average congruence (i.e., at sample distance mean); and low congruence (i.e., 1 SD above sample distance mean). Estimates were computed holding all other variables in the model constant at their average values. CBC = conjoint behavioral consultation.

Abstract.

The present study examined parent–teacher congruent communication within conjoint behavioral consultation (CBC). Specifically, the study purpose was to determine the extent to which congruence in parent–teacher communication (i.e., the degree to which parents and teachers view their communication in a similar fashion) moderated CBC's effects on children's social skills. Drawn from a large randomized trial investigating the efficacy of CBC, the participants were 166 children and their parents and 74 teachers. The findings suggested that CBC's effects on teacher-reported children's social skills depend on congruent parent–teacher communication. Specifically, for students whose parents and teachers have these communication conditions, social skills are expected to increase only in the context of the CBC intervention. Implications for CBC research and school-based consultation are discussed.

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Additional information

Notes on contributors

S. Andrew Garbacz

S. Andrew Garbacz, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Special Education and Clinical Sciences and a research scientist with the Prevention Science Institute at the University of Oregon. His research interests include examining prevention and intervention programs that target the connection between home and school to support children's positive social behaviors within a tiered framework, including parent–teacher (conjoint) behavioral consultation, positive behavioral interventions and supports, and positive family support.

Susan M. Sheridan

Susan M. Sheridan, PhD, is a George Holmes University Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, where she directs the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools and the National Center for Research on Rural Education. Her research interests include parent engagement and partnerships, parent–teacher (conjoint) behavioral consultation, social–behavioral interventions, and early childhood. She is a fellow of Division 16 of the American Psychological Association and past president of the Society for the Study of School Psychology.

Natalie A. Koziol

Natalie A. Koziol, MA, MS, is a doctoral candidate in the Quantitative, Qualitative, and Psychometric Methods Program in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Her research interests include hierarchical linear modeling with an emphasis on complex survey data and structural equation modeling with an emphasis on latent-variable measurement models for categorical data.

Kyongboon Kwon

Kyongboon Kwon, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. Her research interests include the effect of the peer group and families on children's social and academic competencies.

Shannon R. Holmes

Shannon R. Holmes, MA, is a graduate research assistant with the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and School and a doctoral candidate in the School Psychology Program within the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Her research interests include family–school partnerships, parent–teacher (conjoint) behavioral consultation, and treatment integrity.