Top-down, bottom-up, and around the jungle gym: a social exchange and networks approach to engaging afterschool programs in implementing evidence-based practices.
This paper uses concepts from social networks and social exchange theories to describe the implementation of evidence-based practices in afterschool programs. The members of the LEGACY Together Afterschool Project team have been involved in conducting collaborative research to migrate a behavioral strategy that has been documented to reduce disruptive behaviors in classroom settings to a new setting-that of afterschool programs. We adapted the Paxis Institute's version of the Good Behavior Game to afterschool settings which differ from in-school settings, including more fluid attendance, multiple age groupings, diverse activities that may take place simultaneously, and differences in staff training and experience (Barrish et al. in J Appl Behav Anal 2(2):119-124, 1969; Embry et al. in The Pax Good Behavior Game. Hazelden, Center City, 2003; Hynes et al. in J Child Serv 4(3):4-20, 2009; Kellam et al. in Drug Alcohol Depend 95:S5-S28, 2008; Tingstrom et al. in Behav Modif 30(2):225-253, 2006). This paper presents the experiences of the three adult groups involved in the implementation process who give first-person accounts of implementation: (1) university-based scientist-practitioners, (2) community partners who trained and provided technical assistance/coaching, and (3) an afterschool program administrator. We introduce here the AIMS model used to frame the implementation process conceptualized by this town-gown collaborative team. AIMS builds upon previous work in implementation science using four phases in which the three collaborators have overlapping roles: approach/engagement, implementation, monitoring, and sustainability. Within all four phases principles of Social Exchange Theory and Social Network Theory are highlighted.
The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16803, USA, eps10@psu.edu.
Emilie Phillips
EP
Smith
Eileen
E
Wise
Howard
H
Rosen
Alison
A
Rosen
Sharon
S
Childs
Margaret
M
McManus
D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D019058:Community Networks; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007899:Leisure Activities; D008297:Male; D017146:Models, Organizational; D033262:Narration; D016730:Program Development; D012574:Schools; D012944:Social Support