collaborative problem solving plan abc

The Source For Parenting Advice & Events In Oregon

• Collaborative Problem Solving – Plans A And C

This is the sixth column in a series of columns about Collaborative Problem Solving, or CPS. You can find the previous column here .

The previous columns have centered around how to use “Plan B” to solve unsolved problems with your child. “Plan B” is the preferred method of solving problems. However, within the CPS framework, there is also a “Plan A” and “Plan C”. Let’s look briefly at what those are and when they might be of use.

“Plan A” is CPS terminology for the conventional method of solving problems, in which the adult simply imposes their will on the child. There is a relational cost to using Plan A, and it should be used sparingly, but there may be times when safety concerns outweigh the potential relational cost and the adult must find some way to simply impose their will. Consider a parent who simply picks up and holds a toddler, despite the ensuing tantrum, to prevent them from running into the street. Think of the parent of a teenager withholding permission for their child to attend a party that is not properly supervised. These are the types of scenarios in which Plan A might be appropriate. It’s essential when using Plan A that the parent has a workable plan for enforcement. If your plan is not enforceable, then you must go to Plan B.

“Plan C” is CPS terminology for choosing to ignore the problem, for the time being. You might employ this for one of two reasons:

1. Solving the problem requires cognitive skills that are currently beyond your child’s level of development.

2. You are focused on other unsolved problems at the moment.

When employing Plan C, it’s important to note that you are only ignoring this for the time being . There will come a time later on, after more cognitive development has taken place, or after some other unsolved problems resolve into durable solutions, when you will be able to take up any problem that you’ve chosen to “Plan C” for the moment.

The next, and final, column in this series will center around how to prioritize which unsolved problems to tackle first. It will also provide some further CPS resources.

Matthew King lives with his fifteen-year-old son in Corvallis, Oregon, where he’s taught English for thirteen years. He also does advocacy work in the school district for children who have experienced trauma in early childhood. In his spare time he hikes, reads, writes, practices meditation, and watches his son ride dirt bikes. He welcomes comments and feedback and can be contacted at [email protected]

Jump to content

Psychiatry Academy

Bookmark/search this post.

You are here

Parenting, teaching and treating challenging kids: the collaborative problem solving approach.

• CE Information
• Register/Take course

Think:Kids and the Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital are pleased to offer an online training program featuring Dr. J. Stuart Ablon. This introductory training provides a foundation for professionals and parents interested in learning the evidence-based approach to understanding and helping children and adolescents with behavioral challenges called Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS). This online training serves as the prerequisite for our professional intensive training.

The CPS approach provides a way of understanding and helping kids who struggle with behavioral challenges. Challenging behavior is thought of as willful and goal oriented which has led to approaches that focus on motivating better behavior using reward and punishment programs. If you’ve tried these strategies and they haven’t worked, this online training is for you! At Think:Kids we have some very different ideas about why these kids struggle. Research over the past 30 years demonstrates that for the majority of these kids, their challenges result from a lack of crucial thinking skills when it comes to things like problem solving, frustration tolerance and flexibility. The CPS approach, therefore, focuses on helping adults teach the skills these children lack while resolving the chronic problems that tend to precipitate challenging behavior.

This training is designed to allow you to learn at your own pace. You must complete the modules sequentially, but you can take your time with the content as your schedule allows. Additional resources for each module provide you with the opportunity for further development. Discussion boards for each module allow you to discuss concepts and your own experiences with other participants. Faculty from the Think:Kids program monitor the boards and offer their point of view.

Registrants will have access to course materials from the date of their registration through the course expiration date.

All care Providers: $149 Due to COVID-19, we are offering this course at the reduced rate of $99 for a limited time.

NOTE: If you are paying for your registration via Purchase Order, please send the PO to [email protected] . Our customer service agent will respond with further instructions.

Cancellation Policy

Refunds will be issued for requests received within 10 business days of purchase, but an administrative fee of $35 will be deducted from your refund. No refunds will be made thereafter. Additionally, no refunds will be made for individuals who claim CME or credit, regardless of when they request a refund.

Through the duration of the course, the faculty moderator will respond to any clinical questions that are submitted to the interactive discussion board. The faculty moderator for this course will be:

J. Stuart Ablon, PhD

*** Please note that discussion boards are reviewed on a regular basis, and responses to all questions will be posted within one week of receipt. ***

Target Audience

This program is intended for: Parents, clinicians, educators, allied mental health professionals, and direct care staff.

Learning Objectives

At the end of this program, participants will be able to:

• Shift thinking and approach to foster positive relationships with children
• Reduce challenging behavior
• Foster proactive, rather than reactive interventions
• Teach skills related to self-regulation, communication and problem solving

MaMHCA, and its agent, MMCEP has been designated by the Board of Allied Mental Health and Human Service Professions to approve sponsors of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for licensure renewal, in accordance with the requirements of 262 CMR 3.00.

This program has been approved for 3.00 CE credit for Licensed Mental Health Counselors MaMHCA.

Authorization number: 17-0490

The Collaborative of NASW, Boston College, and Simmons College Schools of Social Work authorizes social work continuing education credits for courses, workshops, and educational programs that meet the criteria outlined in 258 CMR of the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers

This program has been approved for 3.00 Social Work Continuing Education hours for relicensure, in accordance with 258 CMR. Collaborative of NASW and the Boston College and Simmons Schools of Social Work Authorization Number D 61675-E

This course allows other providers to claim a Participation Certificate upon successful completion of this course.

Participation Certificates will specify the title, location, type of activity, date of activity, and number of AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ associated with the activity. Providers should check with their regulatory agencies to determine ways in which AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ may or may not fulfill continuing education requirements. Providers should also consider saving copies of brochures, agenda, and other supporting documents.

The Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Psychiatry is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Psychiatry maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

This offering meets the criteria for 3.00 Continuing Education (CE) credits per presentation for psychologists.

Stuart Ablon, PhD

Available credit.

Parents Learn Plan A, B and C to Solve Their Children's Behavior Problems

Youth villages adopts collaborative problem solving in national partnership with mass general's think:kids.

Newswise — His mom thought Neko had been smoking marijuana again.

Doing drugs was part of a slew of problems that had gotten him sent to a Tennessee youth detention center, for six months. Now that he was home, Neko and his mother and two sisters were trying to communicate better. The stakes were high: While Neko was in detention, his baby daughter had been born, and he and his family had primary custody of her.

He’d left their sparsely furnished apartment near the airport in Memphis the night before, even though his mother had expressly forbidden it. He wouldn’t say where he was going.

The next day, standing around the apartment kitchen, Neko, his mom, and his sister talked about what had happened. Or at least they tried.

Mom, her arms folded across her chest and a scowl on her face, was clearly still angry about being disobeyed. And maybe frightened about what could have happened the night before to her 16-year-old son.

Also in the kitchen was Tina Brown, a family intervention specialist with Youth Villages, a nationwide nonprofit dedicated to helping emotionally troubled children and their families. She’d been seeing Neko and his family three times a week since he came home. She brought with her a powerful new tool that’s also a revolutionary way of approaching troubled kids and the conflict they bring to their lives and their families.

It’s called Collaborative Problem Solving, or CPS, and the evidence-based intervention is part of a sweeping rethinking on the part of Youth Villages about what really makes kids act out, get into trouble with alcohol, drugs or sex, or even turn to violence or suicide. Youth Villages has already added CPS to the evidence-based interventions used in its programs in Oregon, Massachusetts, Indiana, Oklahoma, Mississippi and parts of Tennessee. Eventually, the treatment method will spread throughout the organization, which helps more than 22,000 children each year from 20 states and Washington, D.C.

Skill, Not Will

A leading proponent of CPS in the United States is Dr. Stuart Ablon, director of the Think:Kids program at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

He points out that CPS flies in the face of the conventional wisdom that says children do well only if they want to. If kids don’t follow the rules, conventional wisdom says, they are lazy, unmotivated or defiant. If they disrupt class or kick the door in during an angry outburst or worse, they are just looking for attention.

“So if kids don’t behave,” Ablon said, “they must not want to.”

Ridiculous, he added. “Kids do well if they can. I have yet to meet a kid who prefers doing poorly to doing well.”

Think of it this way: The most challenged kids have delays in brain development from a young age that make it harder for them to learn three critical skills – flexibility, the ability to tolerate frustration and problem solving.

“These deficits come from chronic stress and trauma that is actually toxic to the brain,” explained Ablon. “Toxic stress literally delays brain development.”

Which means that traditional discipline or other interventions don’t build the skills that these kids need, exacerbating their differences, eroding their relationships and “making the kids feel horrible,” noted Ablon.

Enter CPS, which is set up to teach kids – and their families – the skills they need to learn to cope with, what psychiatrists call, dysregulation, but what is commonly known as anger, stress, excitement, temptation, upsetting events…the ups and downs of everyday life.

“It’s one of the few interventions that I know of where the treatment itself is the lever that allows a kid to get better,” said Dr. Tim Goldsmith, chief clinical officer at Youth Villages. “Not only do you get the problem solved and you get better behavior, but also kids’ brains get better at the same time. There aren’t very many things that do that.”

Making a Plan B

At the heart of CPS, said Katherine Peatross, Youth Villages’ clinical program manager, is a decision about what kind of conversation will happen when conflict occurs.

“There are three ways to manage unmet expectations or triggers between a kid and his or her parent or guardian,” she added.

The first is called Plan A, and will sound familiar to traditional disciplinarians: An adult imposes his or her will on a child, basically saying, “Do this because I say so.” Threatening consequences or counting to three qualify as Plan A conversations, too, since the child at the heart of the conflict has no say-so. Youth Villages’ experts are quick to point out that an adult is always responsible for a child’s safety, but usually Plan A conversations aren’t about an immediate physical threat.

The second option is a Plan B conversation, and here’s where CPS actually happens.

“The first step is empathy,” said Peatross, pointing out that Plan B conversations have specific steps, but at its base they are about solving a problem. “Ask the child about the problem using neutral observations. ‘I’ve noticed that … what’s up with that?’”

Here’s where the idea that kids will do well if they can becomes clearer. “You focus on the circumstances around the problem, and get the child’s perspective. Then you have an opportunity to express your concern about a problem and begin to come up with solutions.” The goal is solving the problem for both the adult and the kid. Which means the adult doesn’t get to decide in advance what the solution to the problem might be.

Plan C is not failure it’s an important part of the process -- an agreement to drop the conflict for now, to walk away.

“Plan B conversations are hard,” Peatross acknowledged, “and they don’t always work, you don’t always get to a solution.” But especially for kids who are easily frustrated, quick to anger, and have trouble being flexible, the skills they learn through muddling through Plan B conversations, with either their therapist, parent, guardian or teacher are critical.

“It’s the conversation itself that is the treatment,” said Peatross, compared to other therapies that happen in a therapist’s office, cut off from regular life and problems. “Every back-and-forth may be a dose.” The people who are involved in the problem – both the kids and their family members – are the ones learning to solve it, with everyone sharpening their skills for the next time, and the next.

Yes, it’s messy, Ablon admitted. “If not everyone is on board, if there’s tension all around, that means change is starting to happen.”

For Neko, CPS (with an assist from Brown) became a way to learn how to tell his mother what his real concern was when he bolted from the apartment that night: He was worried they didn’t have enough diapers for the baby, and knew his grandfather would give him the money to buy more. Later in the conversation, though, the talk turned to what Neko would do if he was confronted again with guys trying to get him to do drugs.

“Can I get back to you tomorrow on that?” he asked.

The strategy Neko came up with the next day involved staying away from a particular park at the time he thought the drug guys would be there, and planning to walk away if he saw them again. Problem solved? Maybe not forever, but both Neko and his mother have skills they can use, and hone, when the next problem arises.

“It’s difficult to work with kids,” said Brent Doyle, clinical training consultant at Youth Villages, “but the biggest struggle on the front end is changing the mindset of the adults closest to them.”

In fact, adults are often as much a part of the problem as the kids who are struggling, and for many of the same reasons – toxic stress, drug and alcohol problems, exposure to violence or abuse. CPS, added Doyle, has become the backbone of Youth Villages’ clinical decision making, for all their families across all their programs.

After all, “Adults do well if they can, too.”

Does CPS Really Work?

Implementing CPS across Youth Villages is a major shift in approach, and part of that, in keeping with the organization’s mission, is assessing how CPS is working. In many ways, Youth Villages is set up to do just the kind of cutting-edge research that could keep building momentum for CPS, both across the Youth Villages system and with Think:Kids.

“We have the infrastructure that most of their other partners don’t have to accomplish different kinds of research,” said Sarah Hurley, Ph.D., director of data science at Youth Villages.

The studies that Youth Villages and Think:Kids will collaborate on are focused on two Memphis-area middle schools. They will involve comparing how CPS works in the classroom with classrooms not using it and will also develop a measurement to see how well CPS is working. Finally, the two organizations will work with youth in a Youth Villages residential program in Georgia to measure the brain changes that effective, consistent use of CPS might be making in the kids who learn it.

“It’s a very exciting partnership,” concluded Hurley. “It has brought us a new set of tools to help us assist a population with very difficult problems.”

MEDIA CONTACT

Article multimedia.

TYPE OF ARTICLE

• Experts keyboard_arrow_right Expert Pitch Expert Query Expert Directory
• Journalists
• About keyboard_arrow_right Member Services Accessibility Statement Newswise Live Invoice Lookup Services for Journalists Archived Wires Participating Institutions Media Subscribers Sample Effectiveness Reports Terms of Service Privacy Policy Our Staff Contact Newswise
• Blog FAQ Help

Collaborative Problem Solving

• First Online: 01 January 2010

Cite this chapter

• Ross W. Greene 4  

4526 Accesses

7 Citations

1 Altmetric

Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) is an evidence-based, cognitive-behavioral psychosocial treatment approach first described in the book The Explosive Child (Greene, 1998). The model blends many different lines of theory and research, including developmental theory, systems theory, social learning theory, and research in the neurosciences. CPS has been applied predominantly to youth with externalizing behavior problems, and has been implemented in a wide range of settings, including families, ­general and special education schools, inpatient psychiatry units, and residential and juvenile correction facilities. This chapter describes the most current rendition of the model, along with research findings to date.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

• Available as PDF
• Read on any device
• Instant download
• Own it forever
• Available as EPUB and PDF
• Compact, lightweight edition
• Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
• Free shipping worldwide - see info
• Durable hardcover edition

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

H. Abikoff, R.G. Klein, Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and conduct disorder: Comorbidity and implications for treatment. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 60 , 881–892 (1992)

Article   PubMed   Google Scholar  

American Psychiatric Association, Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders , 4th edn. (Author, Washington, DC, 1994)

Google Scholar  

A. Angold, E.J. Costello, Depressive comorbidity in children and adolescents: Empirical, theoretical, and methodological issues. American Journal of Psychiatry 150 , 1779–1791 (1993)

PubMed   Google Scholar  

L. Baker, D.P. Cantwell, A prospective psychiatric follow-up of with speech/language disorders. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 26 , 546–553 (1987)

R.A. Barkley, Behavioral inhibition, sustained attention, and executive functions: Constructing a unifying theory of ADHD. Psychological Bulletin 121 (1), 65–94 (1997a)

R.A. Barkley, Defiant children: A clinician’s manual for assessment and parent training , 2nd edn. (Guilford Press, New York, 1997b)

J.H. Beitchman, J. Hood, A. Inglis, Psychiatric risk in children with speech and language disorders. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology 18 , 283–296 (1990)

J.H. Beitchman, J. Hood, J. Rochon, M. Peterson, Empirical classification of speech/language impairment in. II. Behavioral characteristics. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 28 , 118–123 (1989)

R. Bell, A reinterpretation of the direction of effects in socialization. Psychological Review 75 , 81–95 (1968)

J. Belsky, The determinants of parenting: A process model. Child Development 55 , 83–96 (1984)

P.A. Brennan, E.R. Grekin, S.A. Mednick, Prenatal and perinatal influences on conduct disorder and serious delinquency, in Causes of conduct disorder and juvenile delinquency , ed. by B.B. Lahey, T.E. Moffitt, A. Caspi (Guilford, New York, 2003), pp. 319–344

E.V. Brestan, S.M. Eyberg, Effective psychosocial treatment of conduct-disordered children and adolescents: 29 years, 82 studies, and 5, 272 kids. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology 27 (2), 180–189 (1998)

I. Bretherton, J. Fritz, C. Zahn-Waxler, D. Ridgeway, Learning to talk about emotions: A functionalist perspective. Child Development 57 , 529–548 (1986)

Article   Google Scholar  

C.L. Budman, R.D. Bruun, K.S. Park, M.E. Olson, Rage attacks in children and adolescents with Tourette’s disorder: A pilot study. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 59 (11), 576–580 (1998)

P. Chamberlain, G.R. Patterson, Discipline and child compliance in parenting, in Handbook of parenting (Vol.4): Applied and practical parenting , ed. by M.H. Bornstein (Lawrence Erlbaum, Mahwah, NJ, 1995)

S. Chess, A. Thomas, Origins and evolution of behavior disorders: From infancy to early adult life (Brunner/Mazel, New York, 1984)

D. Cicchetti, M. Lynch, Toward and ecological/transactional model of community violence and child maltreatment. Psychiatry 56 , 96–118 (1993)

D. Cicchetti, M. Lynch, Failures in the expectable environment and their impact on individual development: The case of child maltreatment, in Developmental psychopathology , ed. by D. Cicchetti, D.J. Cohen. Risk, disorder, and adaptation, vol. 2 (Wiley, New York, 1995), pp. 32–71

Coie, J. D., & Dodge, K. A. (1998). Aggression and anti-social behavior. In W. Damon (Ed.), Handbook of child psychology (5th ed.): Vol. 3. Social, emotional, and personality development (pp. 779–862). New York: Wiley

M.B. Denckla, A theory and model of executive function: A neuropsychological perspective, in Attention, memory, and executive function , ed. by G.R. Lyon, N.A. Krasnegor (Paul H. Brookes, Baltimore, MD, 1996), pp. 263–278

T.J. Dishion, G.R. Patterson, Age affects in parent training outcomes. Behavior Therapy 23 , 719–729 (1992)

Feindler, E. L. (1990). Adolescent anger control: Review and critique. In M. Hersen, R. M. Eisler, & P. M. Miller (Eds.), Progress in behavior modification (Vol. 26, 00. 11–59). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

E.L. Feindler, Cognitive strategies in anger control interventions for children and adolescents, in Child and adolescent therapy: Cognitive-behavioral procedures , ed. by P.C. Kendall (Guilford Press, New York, 1991), pp. 66–97

E.L. Feindler, An ideal treatment package for children and adolescents with anger disorders, in Anger disorders: Definition, diagnosis, and treatment , ed. by H. Kassinove (Taylor & Francis, Washington, DC, 1995), pp. 173–195

E.J. Garland, M. Weiss, Case study: Obsessive difficult temperament and its response to serotonergic medication. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 35 (7), 916–920 (1996)

B. Geller, J. Luby, Child and adolescent bipolar disorder: Review of the past 10 years. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 36 (9), 1–9 (1997)

G. Gottlieb, Individual development and evolution: The genesis of novel behavior (Oxford University Press, New York, 1992)

J. Gottman, The world of coordinated play: Same and cross-sex friendship in children, in Conversations of friends: Speculations on affective development , ed. by J.M. Gottman, J.G. Parker (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England, 1986), pp. 139–191

R.W. Greene, Students with ADHD in school classrooms: Teacher factors related to compatibility, assessment, and intervention. School Psychology Review 24 (1), 81–93 (1995)

R.W. Greene, Students with ADHD and their teachers: Implications of a goodness-of-fit perspective, in Advances in clinical child psychology , ed. by T.H. Ollendick, R.J. Prinz (Plenum, New York, 1996), pp. 205–230

Chapter   Google Scholar  

R.W. Greene, The explosive child: Understanding and parenting easily frustrated, “Chronically Inflexible” children (HarperCollins, New York, 1998)

R.W. Greene, Lost at school: Why our kids with behavioral challenges are falling through the cracks and how we can help them (Scribner, New York, 2008)

Greene, R.W. (2010). Conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder. In J. Thomas & M. Hersen (Eds.), Handbook of Clinical Psychology Competencies . New York: Springer Publishing, 1329–1350

Greene, R.W. (2010). Collaborative problem solving: The model and its application across settings. New York: Guilford (in press)

R.W. Greene, R.R. Abidin, C. Kmetz, The index of teaching stress: A measure of student-teacher compatibility. Journal of School Psychology 35 (3), 239–259 (1997)

R.W. Greene, S.A. Ablon, A. Martin, Innovations: Child psychiatry: Use of collaborative problem solving to reduce seclusion and restraint in child and adolescent inpatient units. Psychiatric Services 57 (5), 610–616 (2006)

R.W. Greene, J.S. Ablon, M. Monuteaux, J. Goring, A. Henin, L. Raezer, G. Edwards, J. Markey, S. Rabbitt, Effectiveness of collaborative problem solving in affectively dysregulated youth with oppositional defiant disorder: Initial findings. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 72 , 1157–1164 (2004)

R.W. Greene, J. Biederman, S. Zerwas, M. Monuteaux, J.C. Goring, S.V. Faraone, Psychiatric comorbidity, family dysfunction, and social impairment in referred youth with oppositional defiant disorder. American Journal of Psychiatry 159 , 1214–1224 (2002)

R.W. Greene, A.E. Doyle, Toward a transactional conceptualization of oppositional defiant disorder: Implications for assessment and treatment. Clinical and Family Psychology Review 2 (3), 129–147 (1999)

R.W. Greene, T.H. Ollendick, Behavioral assessment of children, in Handbook of psychological assessment , ed. by G. Goldstein, M. Hersen, 3rd edn. (Elsevier Science (Pergamon), Oxford, 2000), pp. 453–470

J.D. Harnish, K.A. Dodge, E. Valente, Mother-child interaction quality as a partial ­mediator of the roles of maternal depressive symptomatology and socioeconomic status in the development of child conduct problems. Child Development 66 , 739–753 (1995)

S.C. Hayes, R.O. Nelson, B.B. Jerrett, The treatment utility of assessment: A functional approach to evaluating assessment quality. American Psychologist 42 , 963–974 (1987)

S.P. Hinshaw, B.B. Lahey, E.L. Hart, Issues of taxonomy and comorbidity in the development of conduct disorder. Development and Psychopathology 5 , 31–49 (1993)

A.E. Kazdin, Treatment of conduct disorder: Progress and directions in psychotherapy research. Development and Psychopathology 5 , 277–310 (1993)

A.E. Kazdin, Parent management training: Evidence, outcomes, and issues. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 36 (10), 1349–1356 (1997)

A.E. Kazdin, K. Esveldt-Dawson, N.H. French, A.S. Unis, Problem-solving skills training and relationship therapy in the treatment of antisocial child behavior. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 55 , 76–85 (1987)

A.E. Kazdin, T.C. Siegel, D. Bass, Cognitive problem-solving skills training and parent management training in the treatment of antisocial behavior in children. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 60 (5), 733–747 (1992)

P.C. Kendall, Toward a cognitive-behavioral model of child psychopathology and a critique of related interventions. Journal of Abnormal Psychology 13 , 357–372 (1985)

P.C. Kendall, Guiding theory for therapy with children and adolescents, in Child and adolescent therapy: Cognitive-behavioral procedures , ed. by P.C. Kendall (Guilford Press, New York, 1991), pp. 3–22

P.C. Kendall, J.P. MacDonald, Cognition in the psychopathology of youth and implications for treatment, in Psychopathology and cognition , ed. by K.S. Dobson, P.C. Kendall (Academic Press, San Diego, CA, 1993), pp. 387–426

C.B. Kopp, Regulation of distress and negative emotions: A developmental view. Developmental Psychology 25 (3), 343–354 (1989)

B.B. Lahey, R. Loeber, Framework for a developmental model of oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder, in Disruptive behavior disorders in childhood , ed. by D.K. Routh (Plenum, New York, 1994)

J.E. Lochman, Cognitive-behavioral interventions with aggressive boys. Child Psychiatry and Human Development 16 , 45–56 (1992)

J.E. Lochman, P.R. Burch, J.F. Curry, L.B. Lampron, Treatment and generalization effects of cognitive-behavioral and goal-setting interventions with aggressive boys. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 52 , 915–916 (1984)

J.E. Lochman, L.B. Lampron, T.C. Gemmer, S.R. Harris, Anger coping intervention with aggressive children: A guide to implementation in school settings, in Innovations in clinical practice: A source book , ed. by P.A. Keller, S.R. Heyman, vol. 6 (Professional Resource Exchange, Sarasota, FL, 1987), pp. 339–356

A. Martin, H. Krieg, F. Esposito, D. Stubbe, L. Cardona, Reduction of restraint and seclusion through Collaborative Problem Solving: A five-year, prospective inpatient study. Psychiatric Services 59 (12), 1406–1412 (2008)

R.J. McMahon, K.C. Wells, Conduct problems, in Treatment of childhood disorders , ed. by E.J. Mash, R.A. Barkley, 2nd edn. (Guilford, New York, 1998), pp. 111–210

B. Milner, Aspects of human frontal lobe function, in Epilepsy and the functional autonomy of the frontal lobe , ed. by H.H. Jasper, S. Riggio, P.S. Goldman-Rakic (Raven Press, New York, 1995), pp. 67–81

W. Mischel, Delay of gratification as process and as person variable in development, in Interactions in human development , ed. by D. Magnusson, V.P. Allen (Academic Press, New York, 1983), pp. 149–165

T.E. Moffitt, D. Lynam, The neuropsychology of conduct disorder and delinquency: Implications for understanding antisocial behavior, in Experimental personality and psychopathology research 1994 , ed. by D.C. Fowles, P. Sutker, S.H. Goodman (Springer, New York, 1994), pp. 233–262

G.R. Patterson, P. Chamberlain, A functional analysis of resistance during parent training therapy. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice 1 (1), 53–70 (1994)

G.R. Patterson, M.E. Gullion, Living with children: New methods for parents and ­teachers (Research Press, Champaign, IL, 1968)

G.R. Patterson, J.B. Reid, T.J. Dishion, Antisocial boys (Castalia, Patterson, OR, 1992)

B.F. Pennington, S. Ozonoff, Executive functions and developmental psychopathology. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 37 , 51–87 (1996)

R.J. Prinz, G.E. Miller, Family-based treatment for childhood antisocial behavior: Experimental influences on dropout and engagement. Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology 62 , 645–650 (1994)

A. Sameroff, Early influences on development: Fact or fancy? Merrill-Palmer Quarterly 21 , 263–294 (1975)

A. Sameroff, General systems theory and developmental psychopathology, in Developmental psychopathology (Vol. 1): Theory and methods , ed. by D. Cicchetti, D.J. Cohen (Wiley, New York, 1995), pp. 659–695

C.A. Stifter, T.L. Spinrad, J.M. Braungart-Rieker, Toward a developmental model of child compliance: The role of emotion regulation in infancy. Child Development 70 (1), 21–32 (1999)

T.K. Taylor, A. Biglan, Behavioral family interventions for improving child rearing: A review of the literature for clinicians and policy makers. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review 1 (1), 41–60 (1998)

C. Webster-Stratton, Enhancing the effectiveness of self-administered videotape parent training for families with conduct-problem children. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology 18 , 479–492 (1990)

D. Zillman, Cognition-excitation interdependencies in aggressive behavior. Aggressive Behavior 14 , 51–64 (1988)

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Harvard Medical School, Newton, USA

Ross W. Greene

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and affiliations.

Royal North Shore Hospital, Health Psychology Unit, University of Technology Sydney, St. Leonards, Sydney, 2065, New South Wales, Australia

Rachael C. Murrihy

Antony D. Kidman

Child Study Center, Department of Psychology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, 24060, Virginia, USA

Thomas H. Ollendick

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2011 Springer New York

About this chapter

Greene, R.W. (2011). Collaborative Problem Solving. In: Murrihy, R., Kidman, A., Ollendick, T. (eds) Clinical Handbook of Assessing and Treating Conduct Problems in Youth. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6297-3_8

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6297-3_8

Published : 17 August 2010

Publisher Name : Springer, New York, NY

Print ISBN : 978-1-4419-6295-9

Online ISBN : 978-1-4419-6297-3

eBook Packages : Behavioral Science Behavioral Science and Psychology (R0)

Share this chapter

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Publish with us

Policies and ethics

• Find a journal
• Track your research

• Counseling & Therapy Services
• Residential Center for Healing & Resilience
• Birth Parents
• Adoptive Parents
• Suicide Prevention
• YOUTHWORKS!
• Planned Giving
• Appreciated Assets
• Events & Galas
• Careers & Volunteering
• Leading Edge for Youth
• For Employees

Collaborative Problem Solving for Parents: A Step-by-Step Guide to Addressing Family Issues

Idaho Youth Ranch

Subscribe to our blog

Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) is an evidence-based approach that focuses on understanding and addressing the root causes of challenging behavior in children and adolescents. Developed by Dr. Ross Greene, CPS aims to foster empathy, communication, and collaboration between parents and their children to find effective and lasting solutions for family issues This resource guide provides an overview of the CPS model, outlines the key principles and steps involved, and offers practical tips and strategies for parents. Additionally, it includes three real-life family situations to demonstrate how to apply CPS in various contexts.  

Understanding the Collaborative Problem Solving Model 

1. The CPS Philosophy

CPS is grounded in the belief that children do well if they can. The approach posits that challenging behavior is not due to a lack of motivation, attention-seeking, or manipulation but rather a result of lagging skills and unsolved problems. By understanding and addressing these underlying factors, parents can develop more effective, compassionate, and sustainable solutions.  

2. Key Principles of CPS

Empathy: The foundation of the CPS model is empathic understanding, which involves recognizing and validating the feelings and perspectives of all family members.  

Collaboration: CPS emphasizes the importance of working together, rather than relying on unilateral decision-making or power-based approaches.  

Skill-building: The CPS approach focuses on identifying and addressing lagging skills, such as emotion regulation, problem-solving, and communication, to promote lasting change.  

Implementing the Collaborative Problem Solving Process 

1. Identifying Lagging Skills

The first step in the CPS process is to identify the specific skills that your child may be struggling with. This can be done through a combination of observation, communication, and reflection. Some common lagging skills include:  

Emotional regulation  

Flexibility  

Impulse control  

Problem-solving  

Communication

Once lagging skills have been identified, the next step is to determine the specific situations or problems that are causing difficulties for your child and family. Unsolved problems are often characterized by predictability and can be uncovered through discussions with your child.  

The Three Steps of Collaborative Problem Solving

The CPS process involves three primary steps, which can be adapted and tailored to the unique needs and circumstances of each family.  

Step 1: Empathy

Begin by gathering information and understanding your child’s perspective on the problem. This step involves active listening, validating emotions, and demonstrating genuine curiosity.  

Step 2: Define Adult Concerns 

Clearly articulate your concerns and needs regarding the situation. This step promotes mutual understanding and acknowledges the importance of addressing both your child’s and your concerns.  

Step 3: Invitation to Collaborate 

Invite your child to brainstorm possible solutions together. Encourage them to consider a range of ideas and evaluate each option based on its feasibility and effectiveness in addressing both your child’s and your concerns.  

Real-Life Examples of Collaborative Problem Solving 

Example 1: Homework Struggles 

Lagging Skills : time management, sustained attention, and frustration tolerance  

Unsolved Problem : difficulty completing homework independently and on time

Step 1: Empathy 

Ask your child about their perspective on the homework situation, and listen to their concerns and frustrations.  

Share your concerns about the importance of completing homework to support their learning and academic success.  

Brainstorm possible solutions together, such as creating a homework schedule, breaking tasks into smaller steps, and providing support as needed.  

Example 2: Sibling Conflicts 

Lagging Skills : emotion regulation, perspective-taking, and conflict resolution  

Unsolved Problem : frequent arguments and conflicts between siblings  

Talk to each child individually to understand their feelings and perspectives on the conflicts.  

Share your concerns about the impact of the conflicts on the family environment and the importance of fostering healthy sibling relationships.  

Involve both siblings in brainstorming possible solutions, such as setting ground rules for communication, establishing a conflict resolution process, and practicing empathy and active listening.  

Example 3: Bedtime Resistance 

Lagging Skills: transitions, self-soothing, and sleep hygiene 

Unsolved Problem : difficulty settling down and falling asleep at bedtime 

Ask your child about their feelings and thoughts related to bedtime, and listen to any fears or concerns they may have.  

Share your concerns about the importance of a consistent bedtime routine for their health, well-being, and overall development. 

Work together to develop a bedtime routine that addresses both your child’s and your concerns, such as establishing a calming pre-bedtime activity, creating a comfortable sleep environment, and gradually adjusting the bedtime schedule.  

Collaborative Problem Solving offers a compassionate and effective approach to addressing challenging behaviors and family issues. By understanding the underlying causes of these difficulties and engaging in a collaborative, empathic problem-solving process, parents can help their children develop lasting solutions and strengthen their relationships. By following the principles and steps outlined in this resource guide and adapting your approach to meet the unique needs of your family, you can support your children in achieving positive, sustainable change.  

Share this article

Leave a Comment

Read more blogs.

Creating Holiday Memories that Build Resilience in Adolescents: A Guide for Parents from Idaho Youth Ranch

The holiday season is a special time for families to create lasting...

Teen Suicide Prevention: Warning Signs to Watch Out For

If you’re worried your teen is suicidal, reach out to the following 24/7...

Unlocking Resilience: How Understanding Your Brain Can Help You Navigate Your Child’s Mental Health Journey

Parenting is a journey filled with joys, challenges, and unexpected turns....

Plan A, B & C

What do you do when presented with a student or child engaging in challenging behaviour?

How consistent are you in your responses to behaviours?

Consider your responses to these behaviours in your school/teaching practice and record your answers before reading the next section.

· A student refuses to put on their hat for play in summer

· You are sworn at by a student who is already upset

· Two students are having a physical fight

· A student refuses to do their homework

· Two students are constantly chatting while you are giving instructions

· A student has a constant need to touch everything new that comes into the classroom and often breaks things.

Remember: this is not an assessed MOOC. Only by being truly honest with yourself about your intentions can you gain the most benefit from this course.

The 3 Plans of Action

In the CPS method, there are generally only three accepted means of dealing with a mismatch between behaviour and expectation (what we would call a challenging or maladaptive behaviour).

Unilateral Imposition of Will

The first means of dealing with a behaviour, or ‘Plan A’, is the unilateral imposition of will upon the person who has the behaviour maladaptation – i.e., we see a problem and tell someone how to fix it, or we fix the behaviour for them.

This may look like:

· Removing the issue

· Telling someone what to do

· Placating

· Doing the behaviour for the person

The unilateral imposition of will has been – and continues to be – applied in schools to this day. Think of detentions, suspensions, exclusions and expulsions. Holding behaviour expectations without giving explicit support or instruction, such as telling a student to be ‘good’, is another application of the imposition of will.

The imposition of adult will does not teach skills or fix issues in any complete, sustainable or mutually agreeable way. What it does do is fix the issue in the moment, at the time it is needed. There is a space for this kind of intervention in behaviour. When behaviour needs to change in the face of safety or security issues, there is room to ‘just do the behaviour’ or say ‘do it how I show you. However, I want you to consider the long-term implications of solving all challenging behaviours in this manner – what skills or abilities is it developing in the ones exhibiting the behaviour?

Setting Aside Expectations

The second manner of intervening in behaviour is the ‘wait and see approach', or setting aside expectations. I find this is what people stress about the most, as it can appear like we are not dealing with the issue at hand or are not actively involved in solving the problem immediately. It is not that we don’t deal with the issue at hand, though – what we do is we set aside the expectations… for now . Not forever!

There is, similarly, a place for this kind of behaviour management – it allows the adult to set aside the expectations that are the stimuli for the child’s challenging or maladaptive behaviour to enable them to put a plan in place or wait for a more appropriate time where the child is more regulated or supported.

Consider this example:

A student is taking a test. They can’t deal with it – it is too stressful, or they don’t have the skills to know how to take the test. So, this child exhibits challenging behaviours. They throw things, lash out, cry and tip over desks.

How can we respond to this? Well, we could impose our will and tell them to ‘sit down and just do the test!’ or say ‘do the test or miss out on lunchtime!’, but how well do we think this will work?

How about, instead, we look at the situation, see that the student is lacking the skills right now to be able to do the test, and let them know that they don’t have to do it right now. Typically, the response I get is ‘Really?!’, and I reply with something like ‘Yes. You still have to do the test, just not right now. Let everyone else get started and then we can come back and see what’s up. This is where we can action the final way to respond to challenging or maladaptive behaviour: Collaborative Problem Solving.

Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS)

The final way to deal with challenging and maladaptive behaviours is to work through the skill deficit with the student or young person as a problem-solving team. There are two types of CPS: emergency CPS and proactive CPS.

Emergency CPS is what you do in the moment. We have all had those curve balls thrown at us where a student has acted out of character or inexplicably to an event or task. Emergency CPS is applying CPS in a responsive manner – identifying challenges, gathering information, and developing solutions in a way that deescalates the situation and allows all participants to remain safe.

Proactive CPS is about Identifying the specific skill a student is lacking, understanding problems where that skill deficit may occur, planning for the development of that skill or developing coping strategies with the student or young person, and planning with the student or young person how they can reach goals, all before the event which triggers the behaviour happens.

As a proficient practitioner of CPS, you will become fluent in applying it in emergencies. This MOOC will focus on using CPS proactively, as these skills can be used effectively in both proactive and emergency CPS.

Pick one or two situations in your classroom or teaching context in which you can experiment with these three intervention styles. Make a plan that includes the situation, your response, and a means of recording the result. This may look like this:

When a student refuses to wear their mask, I will:

1. Tell them to wear their mask, or they will miss out on a preferred activity

2. Tell them they don’t need to use a mask right now but must wait until I have finished whatever I am doing and talk to me about it (and they will have to wear it after).

3. have a discussion with them about what is making wearing the mask hard right now, explain its importance, my concerns and their responsibility, and try to negotiate a compromise.

I will record how the students react in a journal at the end of each lesson in which this has happened.

Pick one day in a week to apply this plan, choose one behaviour a day and collect data about how the different interventions have impacted how the student or young person responds to your interventions.

You can use the ABC chart below to track your progress.

I encourage you to write your reflections in a journal or Word document using these guiding questions:

Have you previously considered the different ways you intervene in behaviour?

Did you find a different method that is not listed here?

Did you find any exciting interactions during the ‘Act’ phase?

Was it more or less difficult to apply the different kinds of intervention? Why and how so?

Collaborative Problem Solving: What It Is and How to Do It

What is collaborative problem solving, how to solve problems as a team, celebrating success as a team.

Problems arise. That's a well-known fact of life and business. When they do, it may seem more straightforward to take individual ownership of the problem and immediately run with trying to solve it. However, the most effective problem-solving solutions often come through collaborative problem solving.

As defined by Webster's Dictionary , the word collaborate is to work jointly with others or together, especially in an intellectual endeavor. Therefore, collaborative problem solving (CPS) is essentially solving problems by working together as a team. While problems can and are solved individually, CPS often brings about the best resolution to a problem while also developing a team atmosphere and encouraging creative thinking.

Because collaborative problem solving involves multiple people and ideas, there are some techniques that can help you stay on track, engage efficiently, and communicate effectively during collaboration.

• Set Expectations. From the very beginning, expectations for openness and respect must be established for CPS to be effective. Everyone participating should feel that their ideas will be heard and valued.
• Provide Variety. Another way of providing variety can be by eliciting individuals outside the organization but affected by the problem. This may mean involving various levels of leadership from the ground floor to the top of the organization. It may be that you involve someone from bookkeeping in a marketing problem-solving session. A perspective from someone not involved in the day-to-day of the problem can often provide valuable insight.
• Communicate Clearly.  If the problem is not well-defined, the solution can't be. By clearly defining the problem, the framework for collaborative problem solving is narrowed and more effective.
• Expand the Possibilities.  Think beyond what is offered. Take a discarded idea and expand upon it. Turn it upside down and inside out. What is good about it? What needs improvement? Sometimes the best ideas are those that have been discarded rather than reworked.
• Encourage Creativity.  Out-of-the-box thinking is one of the great benefits of collaborative problem-solving. This may mean that solutions are proposed that have no way of working, but a small nugget makes its way from that creative thought to evolution into the perfect solution.
• Provide Positive Feedback. There are many reasons participants may hold back in a collaborative problem-solving meeting. Fear of performance evaluation, lack of confidence, lack of clarity, and hierarchy concerns are just a few of the reasons people may not initially participate in a meeting. Positive public feedback early on in the meeting will eliminate some of these concerns and create more participation and more possible solutions.
• Consider Solutions. Once several possible ideas have been identified, discuss the advantages and drawbacks of each one until a consensus is made.
• Assign Tasks.  A problem identified and a solution selected is not a problem solved. Once a solution is determined, assign tasks to work towards a resolution. A team that has been invested in the creation of the solution will be invested in its resolution. The best time to act is now.
• Evaluate the Solution. Reconnect as a team once the solution is implemented and the problem is solved. What went well? What didn't? Why? Collaboration doesn't necessarily end when the problem is solved. The solution to the problem is often the next step towards a new collaboration.

The burden that is lifted when a problem is solved is enough victory for some. However, a team that plays together should celebrate together. It's not only collaboration that brings unity to a team. It's also the combined celebration of a unified victory—the moment you look around and realize the collectiveness of your success.

We can help

Check out MindManager to learn more about how you can ignite teamwork and innovation by providing a clearer perspective on the big picture with a suite of sharing options and collaborative tools.

Need to Download MindManager?

Try the full version of mindmanager free for 30 days.

Celebrating 25 Years

• Join ADDitude
•  | 

• What Is ADHD?
• The ADHD Brain
• ADHD Symptoms
• ADHD in Children
• ADHD in Adults
• ADHD in Women
• Find ADHD Specialists
• New! Symptom Checker
• ADHD Symptom Tests
• All Symptom Tests
• More in Mental Health
• Medication Reviews
• ADHD Medications
• Natural Remedies
• ADHD Therapies
• Managing Treatment
• Treating Your Child
• Behavior & Discipline
• School & Learning
• Teens with ADHD
• Positive Parenting
• Schedules & Routines
• Organizing Your Child
• Health & Nutrition
• More on ADHD Parenting
• Do I Have ADD?
• Getting Things Done
• Relationships
• Time & Productivity
• Organization
• Health & Nutrition
• More for ADHD Adults
• Free Webinars
• Free Downloads
• ADHD Videos
• ADHD Directory
• eBooks + More
• Newsletters
• Guest Blogs
• News & Research
• For Clinicians
• For Educators
• Manage My Subscription
• Get Back Issues
• Digital Magazine
• Gift Subscription
• Renew My Subscription

“Lessons from ‘The Explosive Child’ That Helped Our Son Flourish”

“i cherish the child emerging before my eyes — self-assured, bravely creative, collaborative, and wide open to exploring the road less traveled. we’ve come a long way from the panicked boy in the school playground. my son now has his shoulders back and his head high.”.

It was the first week of Third Grade when I found my son, Owen, curled up under a tree in his school playground. We’d agreed to meet there during recess, a particularly overwhelming part of his day for him. From his ragged breathing, silent sobs, and shaky hands, I knew that my son was having a panic attack.

The deck is stacked against Owen. He has ADHD, learning disabilities , and an anxiety disorder — all of which affect how he learns and interacts with his classmates. He also has significant sensory processing differences . The typical classroom environment can be too much for Owen, leading to the panicked state I found him in during recess.

Given all of Owen’s needs, we knew his recess meltdown that day wouldn’t be the last of it. We desperately needed to come up with a plan to help him advocate for himself and thrive in school despite his daily challenges. But how could we empower Owen to make this change when survival alone was so depleting?

The Explosive Child: Dr. Ross Greene’s CPS Model

The answer was in The Explosive Child — a favorite read in neurodivergent parenting circles. In this book, Dr. Ross Greene outlines his collaborative and proactive solutions (CPS) model , which rests on this important concept: Kids do well if they can.

Problematic behaviors and other issues arise when children struggle to adapt to meet what’s expected of them. The key is for adult and child to collaboratively problem-solve (i.e., work with your child, not against them or without them) so that the child can get back to doing well.

[ Free Download: Required Reading for Parents of Kids with ADHD ]

From tiny setbacks to seemingly impossible troubles, problems emerged just about every day during the school year. Our family made it a point to stick to Dr. Greene’s model: Let Owen talk about his challenges in school and the reasons behind them; speak about our concerns together; and brainstorm solutions as a family for that particular problem.

What we learned after a straight year of following this model altered the course of our family for the better.

Collaborative Problem Solving: What We Learned

1. Truly listening to your child conveys your trust in them and builds self-advocacy skills . When we invited Owen to share his experiences every day, he understood that we saw his perspectives as inherently valid and important, which allowed him to connect with us and feel like an active partner in the problem-solving process. What’s more, we could only collaborate on successful solutions to the degree that Owen knew himself and could identify his own problems. The more we listened to Owen, the more he began to trust himself and increase his self-knowledge.

2. You’ll uncover your true hopes and desires as a parent. There’s room for parents to air their concerns, too, in the CPS model. Issue after issue, we learned that we valued our son’s mental health and happiness over staying on grade level, completing assignments, meeting attendance requirements, and other non-essentials. Having this clarity and focus was pivotal for us in moving forward with countless decisions relating to school and beyond.

[ Read: 6 Truths About Child Behavior Problems That Unlock Better Behavior ]

3. Neurodivergent creativity gets a chance to shine. The CPS model is inherently creative, as every new problem requires fresh solutions. My son’s creative ADHD brain became our most valuable asset during every problem-solving session, as it allowed him to quickly generate unexpected, delightfully surprising solutions to his challenges.

Where’s Owen Now? Flourishing

While we turned to the collaborative process to help our child thrive in a traditional school setting, it actually led us to the choice to homeschool him – a creative solution Owen came up with himself. Owen had developed enough self-insight to realize that traditional schooling might not be the way for him. With our priorities clear, we were inclined to leave the standard schooling path if it meant Owen’s happiness. After a year of trust-building and collaborative problem-solving, we knew that we’d be able to solve whatever challenge we encountered on this unfamiliar path.

I cherish the child emerging before my eyes — self-assured, bravely creative, collaborative, and wide open to exploring the road-less-traveled. We’ve come a long way from the panicked boy in the school playground. My son now has his shoulders back and his head high.

The Explosive Child and ADHD Parenting: Next Steps

• Read: 10 Rules for Dealing with the Explosive Child
• Read: What Are the Lagging Skills Holding Your Child Back?
• Read: How to Shepherd — Not Carry — Your Child Toward Fulfillment
• Get This eBook: The ADHD Positive Parenting Guide

SUPPORT ADDITUDE Thank you for reading ADDitude. To support our mission of providing ADHD education and support, please consider subscribing . Your readership and support help make our content and outreach possible. Thank you.

Caregiver Blogs: Read These Next

Must-Read Books for Parents Raising Children with ADHD

A Radically Positive Parenting Technique

What Are the Lagging Skills Holding Your Child Back?

10 Rules for Dealing with an Explosive Child

Adhd newsletter, the adhd parenting guide, behavior & discipline, positive parenting, organization, happiness & more..

It appears JavaScript is disabled in your browser. Please enable JavaScript and refresh the page in order to complete this form.

The ADHD Positive Parenting Guide

• Collaborative Problem Solving, A Talk with Dr. Stuart Ablon »
• FOR CLINICIANS
• FOR EDUCATORS
• FOR PARENTS

Recent Articles

• How To Talk to Your Kids About Social Media
• Corporal Punishment Ban in New York Sparks Awareness of Practice
• Kids Lack Skill, Not Will
• The Village Network's Implementation Journey
• To Fix Students’ Bad Behavior, Stop Punishing Them
• Behaviors Charts: Helpful or Harmful?

COLLABORATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING

Collaborative problem solving, a talk with dr. stuart ablon, a flawless foundation #flawlesstalk.

In this presentation at the Churchill School, sponsored by The Flawless Foundation, Dr. J. Stuart Ablon describes what causes challenging behavior and the Collaborative Problem Solving ® approach.

Highlights include:

• What consequences do, and don't do
• Collaborative Problem Solving is trauma-informed
• What is discipline
• Research on skills deficits
• Planning an intervention using Collaborative Problem Solving

Collaborative Problem Solving, presented by The Flawless Foundation

Privacy overview, subscribe to our newsletter.