Intervention Research in Emotional and Behavioral Disorders: An Analysis of Studies from 1980–1993

Abstract

The purpose of the current study was to examine the status of experimental research on interventions designed to modify behaviors of children and youth with emotional and/or behavioral disorders (EBD). Twelve journals published between 1980 and 1993 were surveyed to explore possible trends in five descriptive dimensions of the research, including subject characteristics, settings, research design, dependent variables, and independent variables (interventions). In addition, the database was examined to determine whether interventions were based on individualized processes of assessment. The results showed negligible trends, and very few studies reported interventions that were individualized on the basis of assessment data. The discussion addresses the general status of intervention research and the need for applied research.