EDUC 721 – Literature Review Assignment 1
Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support (PBIS) and Its Overall Use and
Effectiveness in Today’s School Systems and Environments
D. Colton Scott
School of PHD: Education: Curriculum and Instruction, Liberty University
EDUC 721 – Literature Review Assignment 2
Abstract
This paper will serve many different educationally-related purposes as they relate to PBIS – also
known as “positive behavioral interventions and supports.” I will also be conducting my own
research to determine the effectiveness of using PBIS in the virtual schooling environment and
the ways in which that specific strategy can be used effectively and for the full benefit of helping
those students both with and without learning challenges or disabilities. First, I will give as much
background information on PBIS, its creation, and its subsequent surge in today’s classrooms as
needed – both general and special education. Also, I will take a closer look at and examine PBIS
and its implementation being put into practice within a virtual online secondary classroom. I will
cross reference my own research with other studies that have been done on PBIS and how it has
succeeded/failed in classrooms across the country today. The overall purpose of this research
article is to fully encompass the PBIS model and its overall impact, or lack thereof, in today’s
schools whether they be traditionally brick-and-mortar, virtual, or otherwise.
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 3
PBIS, also known as “Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports,” has been
circulating in use in some form or another since back in the 1980s. During that time period,
researchers and educators came together to identify and more clearly define different behavioral
interventions for students who may have been suffering from different “behavioral disorders,”
also known simply as “BD” (Sugai & Simonsen, 2013). It was at the University of Oregon
during this same time period where many different researchers started to apply several types of
demonstrations, evaluations, and research studies to try to create an all-encompassing
educational tool where more emphasis would be placed on a myriad of different elements and
factors. Those aforementioned elements and factors included (but were not limited to): a.)
preventing behavioral issues, b.) putting into practice research-based techniques, c.) data-based
decision making, d.) use in school-wide settings in school systems, e.) team-based use and
overall implementation, and f.) overall school professional development trainings amongst
educators, teachers, and staff in educational systems (Sugai & Simonsen, 2013).
Then, around roughly the year 1990 at the start of the decade, the Individuals with
Disabilities Act of 1997 was reauthorized with a grant being established to create a national
“Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports.” Legislation was used to provide
various avenues for technical help and support for school systems where evidence-based
practices were used and measured to help with the overall improvement of students with BD. At
its inception, the center was made up of many different researchers, studiers, and educational
partners and implementers from the likes of the Universities of Oregon, Kansas, Kentucky,
Missouri, and South Florida (Sugai & Simonsen, 2013). Then, in the 2000s, the National
Technical Assistance Center (TA) on PBIS really started to fully form and take shape –
beginning with the assistance in the overall shaping and forming of the current PBIS framework
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 4
and landscape as we know it today. Currently, schools from across the nation implement PBIS
using the coined term, “School-Wide Positive Behavior Supports.” This is where a school or
entire school system decides to take on the PBIS model and framework and put it into practice
with teachers and educators given rigorous professional development training where they learn
the different methods and strategies to effectively and successfully include and implement the
PBIS model within their respective classrooms or school environment.
In recent years, despite PBIS initially being put into place as a way to help support and
intervene with those students with BD, the National Center on PBIS really began to focus on
shifting to more of a school-wide support model where all students could be included and helped
from PBIS benefits and its overall effects. PBIS is seen much more as a sort of process or
technique than just curriculum that is being offered or taught to help with behavioral or
classroom issues. Within the framework of PBIS, there is also a multi-tiered system of support
known as “RTI” or “Response to Intervention” where research evidence and data is emphasized
to help truly assess a student’s behavioral composite and subsequent intervention support. One
of the more fundamental elements of PBIS includes the relationship between positive
reinforcement within schools as a whole and the implementation in individual classrooms and
classroom cultures – where individual student success is regarded with a very high level of
importance amongst teachers and other school staff.
There are lots of different defining characteristics within PBIS and its current framework.
Student outcomes are seen as so vitally important as they relate to data collection and
intervention evaluations and implementations. The aforementioned student outcomes are most
commonly separated into various groups including (but not limited to): 1.) social and academic
groups, 2.) individual/small groups, and 3.) educational and social value (Sugai & Simonsen,
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 5
2013). As PBIS relates to the previously mentioned RTI term, PBIS is really fundamentally
established and formed around several different types of behavioral support practices and
systems (Sugai & Horner, 2006). The PBIS structure as its seen today also places a high amount
of importance on continuous and ongoing professional learning trainings sessions and
development amongst teachers, educators, and staff who implement and use the PBIS model.
PBIS and its framework are of great importance for my type of schooling system in
particular because we have a rather increased level and concentration of students who are on IEP,
504 or intervention-based SPED learning plans. With our school, we see a substantial number of
students come to us in particular because of the way in which we approach and handle special
education as a whole. Also, since we do have such a high amount of students who need PBIS
models baked into their learning plans for them to be able to effectively succeed, our educators
and SPED workers within our school environment are continually trained and taught the ongoing
and ever-changing methods and techniques of PBIS and how to properly implement it within the
SPED environment. We have a rather extraordinary SPED team within my school system where
data is tracked, recorded, reviewed and disseminated weekly for all staff to see where
improvement is needed or where success is taking shape. That same data is used to help
structure PBIS use whether it be in the form of reward system, discipline for lack of
participation, punishment for disruption, etc.
Literature Review Over the PBIS Model:
1.) “The impact of school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) on the
organizational health of elementary schools.”
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 6
a. In the first article that I researched in regards to my overall research question, I
found a very interesting article titled, “The impact of school-wide positive
behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) on the organizational health of
elementary schools.” Throughout this research article, study data is examined
where the overall impact of PBIS on “school organizational health” was used
from a controlled research trial conducted from within 37 elementary schools
(Bradshaw et al., 2008) Based on this article, one can seemingly conclude that
school organizational health is measured by and comprised of several core
elements and features including: 1.) resource influence, 2.) staff affiliation, 3.)
academic emphasis, 4.) collegial leadership, and 5.) institutional integrity
(Bradshaw et al., 2008). 37 public elementary schools in Maryland coming from
5 separate school districts comprised the data pool for the overall research for this
study. Both rural and suburban students were of the affected group looking at the
data of this research. In regards to PBIS and its overall use and implementation,
one of the leading prerequisites for participating in this study included universal
program implementation, which meant that all staff involved had to agree to
implement to ultimately show a genuine willingness to the commitment and
adoption of the framework and structure as a whole. Each school was matched on
a set of baseline demographics that included: a.) students who received free and
reduced meals, b.) overall school enrollment, c.) the overall percentage of those
students who were dealt classroom management disciplines (i.e., suspension,
detention, expulsion, etc.). Once interventions were put into place and school
staff was completely and fully trained to participate in and implement the
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 7
techniques of PBIS, data was then collected periodically throughout the school
year to see where there were, if any, significant improvements in different aspects
of school “organizational health.” The data that was produced showed quite
conclusively that there were marginal effects of significance in regards to
academic emphasis – either from behavioral support coaches or district “liaisons.”
The data collected saw that those who had influence over the students (at school,
home, etc.) likely contributed to the increased academic emphasis as it related to
PBIS and its overall implementation. Another piece that was pointedly interesting
to me dealt with the results of the data collection from these various schools and
how PBIS training and school-wide support with said training really seemed to
help with the aforementioned “organizational health” of the schools as whole
collective educational systems. “The findings indicated that training in school-
wide PBIS is associated with improvements in several aspects of organizational
health. Couching the intervention effects in terms of effect size estimates, the
impact of training in PBIS on change in overall resource influence and staff
affiliation reached practical significance,” (Lipsey, 1998).
2.) “An integrated approach to universal prevention: Independent and combined effects of
PBIS and SEL on youths’ mental health.”
a. This article was presented in the journal, “School Psychology,” where mental
health was at the forefront of the research being conducted as it related to PBIS
and its implementation overall (Cook et al., 2015). The purpose of this research
article and its study was to take a closer look at examining both the independent
and combined effects of PBIS on students and their mental health outcomes after
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 8
being exposed to and taught the framework. The age groups for this study
included: a.) childhood (birth to 12 years old), b.) school age (6 to 12 years old),
and c.) adulthood (18 years old and older). The leading researcher on this study,
Dr. Aaron Lyon, showed in his data collection how the PBIS model used for this
specific study was adapted from the BEST Behavior approach to PBIS (Sprague
& Golly, 2004). Initially, for this research study, several different components
were outlined consisting of 3 – 5 “core behavioral expectations,” the overall
development of strong methods in response to behavioral problems or issues, the
ongoing teaching and subsequent modeling of the aforementioned expectations,
signaling the use of said expectations through the use of posters and visual cues
and signals placed throughout the school, and overall positive reinforcement of
students when they showed and practiced said behavioral expectations through a
system of rewards where students were either given praise, reward tickets for
prizes, etc. Overall, the results from this study went on to show that the
implementation of the above mentioned PBIS design yielded very favorable
results and an overall decrease in student behavioral or classroom management
issues. The research clearly revealed that the integration of PBIS implementation
strategies really helped to affect positive change in student behaviors and overall
school organizational health. This research also served to help guide educational
leaders and decision-makers in helping them to decide whether or not these PBIS
practices are worthwhile and whether or not resources needed to be allocated
toward them.
3.) “Adoption of PBIS within school districts.”
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 9
a. This article aimed to really look at schools adopting PBIS and its model and
following through and actually utilizing and measuring progress in its
implementation and use. “Evidence-based practices are routinely adopted and
abandoned within districts and schools,” (Detrich, 2014). In this research article,
it is claimed that schools oftentimes adopt but then abandon evidence-based
practices (like PBIS) due to school-wide initiatives and programs taking several
years to fully take shape and form. Many school leaders in this research article
said that it was rather “difficult” to be able to “achieve adequate fidelity” spread
out over such a large span of time (McIntosh, Mercer, Nese, & Ghemraoui, 2016).
It is also stated in this journal research article that implementing practices such as
PBIS and its framework with what is termed “high fidelity” (where high quality
practices are displayed routinely) requires a lot of attention and care in regards to
factors such as leadership support establishment, providing teachers, educators,
and staff with high quality and effective professional learning and development in
PBIS techniques and practices, and looking at system barriers and determining
how best to remedy or fix them (Fixsen et al., 2005). This article showed data
where roughly 25,000 schools were currently participating in PBIS in some form
(Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, 2018). This article
also broke down PBIS into three specific tiers including: 1.) primary prevention,
2.) secondary prevention, and 3.) tertiary prevention (Freeman et al., 2016). In
this study, the researchers for the article looked at another group of researchers
and their own study on PBIS where an “exploratory study” was done to help with
the identification variables that were specifically associated with high fidelity
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 10
school districts where positive student outcomes were yielded as a result of direct
PBIS implementation and practice. In that exploratory study outlined in this
research article, the authors were able to identify how district coordinators,
district teams, district team activities, and district buy-in and overall support were
directly linked and associated with high PBIS framework retention and repeated
use year after year (McIntosh et al., 2018).
4.) “Evaluating and Celebrating PBIS Success: Development and Implementation of Ohio’s
PBIS Recognition System”
a. To go hand-in-hand with the previous research article, I also looked at another
specific case where PBIS was used and implemented in a way that yielded
exemplar status as a direct result. The authors of this research article looked at
several different factors that led to Ohio’s exemplar status recognition for their
work with PBIS and its overall implementation within schools in many of its
school districts state-wide. Those factors included: 1.) reviewing the defining
features of Ohio’s state-wide PBIS systems, 2.) providing a respective narrative
that pointed to the overall development, implementation, initial outcomes, and
refinement of Ohio’s PBIS systems, and finally, 3.) recommendations related to
practice-based work that assisted with establishing a PBIS recognition system at
the state level. It is stated, once again, in this research article that PBIS and its
framework, when executed and carried out correctly, efficiently, effectively, and
successfully, includes “defining, teaching, modeling, and reinforcing expected
behaviors” set forth by the school program initiative (Positive Behavioral
Interventions and Supports OSEP Technical Assistance Center, 2016). This
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 11
article even went more in-depth to show how Ohio really went all in on providing
and practicing the core features of PBIS where 3 to 5 behavioral expectations
were stated 1.) in a positive manner, 2.) with how positive behaviors would be
acknowledged overall, 3.) where consequences for consistent and ongoing
behavioral problems or issues would fall, and 4.) where leadership teams would
be established that would support the above mentioned practices (Horner, Sugai,
Todd, & Lewis-Palmer, 2005). Overall, this article really helped to establish just
how effective PBIS can truly be and the recognition that goes hand-in-hand when
implementation is carried out with student’s achievement and growth at the
forefront of the above mentioned practices.
PBIS Implementation Within a Virtual Online English/Language Arts Classroom:
As part of the research I conducted for this project, I went straight to the source and chose
to put into practice a PBIS structure element in one of my own classrooms to see if it would
affect the outcome of a regular “Live Lesson” online session I recently had with a group of my
secondary English/Language Arts students. For this experiment, I decided to allow my regular
group of 12-15 students enter my online Live Lesson room where we were about to begin with
the day’s curriculum instruction lesson. In recent weeks, I’ve had several increasing issues
where chit-chatting and general distraction has been ongoing in the chat feature pod of my Live
Lesson room – while teaching and instruction was taking place. Over those past several Live
Lesson sessions, I continually had to redirect behavior and stop in the middle of instruction to
tell certain students to stop talking to others or refocus on the curriculum being presented. This
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 12
worked to a certain degree after several times of me having to stop instruction and correct the
negative behavior. Although, the next week’s Live Lesson and even the one after that saw the
same issues with the same subsect of students involved continuing to be on the incline.
Therefore, I decided for this past week’s Live Lesson that I would implement a reward
system for all students who did not warrant correction from myself for negative behaviors or
disruptions throughout the overall Live Lesson session. At the very beginning of the session, I
outlined the rules and rewards system being implemented as follows: “If we can make it through
today’s Live Lesson without me having to stop and tell any of you all to stop talking or
disrupting, I will allow extra time at the end of Live Lesson for chit-chat and visitation amongst
yourselves. Also, if we make it the entire period without me having to stop and tell you all to
quit talking while I’m presenting my PowerPoint, I will allow each of you all to submit to me
something you would like me to play at the beginning of one of our upcoming Live Lesson
sessions. For example, this can be an appropriate music video that you all find interesting, a clip
from a movie or show that relates to one of our topics or objectives, or something else that you
all find interesting that you would like to share with the rest of the class and myself.”
The results yielded the following: I started the Live Lesson, and we made it through the
ENTIRE period without anyone interrupting me or distracting anyone else with distractive and
disruptive talking or incessant chit-chat within the chat pod of the Live Lesson room. I was able
to make it through and present the entire instructional curriculum PowerPoint I was presenting
without any disruptions or corrections to negative classroom management behavioral issues.
Therefore, as was set up in the reward system, I gave the students, as promised, an extra ten
minutes of visitation at the end of the Live Lesson session. I also told each student that was
present to submit to me whatever clip, video, or feature they wanted me to start off one of our
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 13
next Live Lessons with, and subsequently, I received many responses in my email box as well.
So, after putting into practice many aspects of specific PBIS framework elements and structures
that I’ve been outlining thus far in this project, I can say firsthand that PBIS framework elements
and techniques can and do work if they are done correctly, effectively, and efficiently all for the
purpose of reaching an overall positive goal or milestone.
A Biblical Worldview as It Relates to PBIS and Its Implementation:
One of the last articles that I researched for this assignment stated the biblical worldview
very clearly to me as it related to PBIS, and some of the parallels it shares with the Lord’s holy
word. “The view that one of the most effective ways of eliminating a problem response is to
replace it with a constructive alternative is advocated by behaviorists, and is clearly present in a
number of biblical teachings which suggest the need to replace sinful behaviors with new, God-
honoring ones. Biblical teachings which suggest that simply punishing or seeking to eliminate
problem behaviors in some other way is not likely to effectively correspond well with behavioral
principles,” (Bufford, 1981). I can say wholeheartedly that I truly agree with this teaching in that
the Bible is full of instances where Jesus asked people to turn from their wicked ways, take up
the cross, and follow Him. I think this applies in every way to PBIS and behavior management –
not only in school systems, but in the world in general. When we are able to open our eyes and
genuinely see the error of our ways and do as Christ said and turn from those ways that are sinful
or wicked, then, our eyes can be absolutely opened to all the positive that is much more likely to
come our way; this -- as opposed to reenacting and reinforcing bad behaviors (sin) with the
expectation that good things will come to us in our lives (blessings).
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 14
Conclusion:
In conclusion for this assignment, I ask the question, “Does PBIS work when
implemented in schools of all designations – whether in the SPED classroom or the general
education classroom?” I think that this project lays out a very pointed terms and with direct
analysis that displays just how important approach can be and how follow through has to be done
for PBIS implementation to have any chance at success. As you can see from several of the
articles I presented above, if there are gaps in implementation, PBIS can crumble – quite readily
and heavily. If implementation is done with strength and focus being pushed at the forefront, it
can really flourish and create positive change for those students who really struggle with
behavioral issues. In my research for this topic, I was also able to see just how important
dedication is and what it means and how it affects just about everything in life. If we don’t
devote all to the common good – just the same as with our relationship with Christ – how can we
expect to reap unbelievable and bountiful benefits and rewards? The same can ultimately be said
for PBIS and its model, structure, and framework altogether. If there isn’t 100% buy-in amongst
a school, group of teachers, educators, and administrators all coming together to put PBIS into
full effect, how can you expect it to fundamentally change negative behaviors and issues
amongst students you may have influence over? The answer is in the execution. When done
correctly, this model and its many elements and factors can create overwhelmingly positive
growth in the educational environment.
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 15
References:
Bradshaw, C. P., Reinke, W. M., Brown, L. D., Bevans, K. B., & Leaf, P. J. (2008).
Implementation of school-wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) in
elementary schools: Observations from a randomized trial. Education and Treatment of
Children, 31, 1–26.
Bufford, R. (1981). Faculty Publications - Grad School of Clinical Psychology (1st ed., Vol. 1).
Harper & Row.
Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, (2018). Schools That Are
Implementing SWPBIS. Retrieved from www.pbis.org (2018)
Clements, J. (2020). A Beginner’s Guide to PBIS. The Psychology of Behavior, 1.
https://jclementspbiscapstone.weebly.com/about-the-author.html
Cook, C. R., Volpe, R., & Gresham, F. M. (2015). Technical adequacy, classification accuracy
and social validity of the student externalizing behavior screener. Assessment for
Effective Intervention.
Detrich, R. (2014). Treatment integrity: Fundamental to education reform. Journal of Cognitive
Education and Psychology, 13 (2014), pp. 258-271, 10.1891/1945-8959.13.2.258
Fixsen, D. L., Naoom, S. F., Blasé, K., Friedman, R.M., Wallace, F. (2005) Implementation
research: Synthesis of the literature. University of South Florida, Louis de la Parte
EDUC721 – Literature Review Assignment 16
Florida Mental Health Institute, The National Implementation Research Network, Tampa,
FL (2005) (FMHI Publication #231)
Horner, R. H., Sugai, G., Todd, A. W., & Lewis-Palmer, T. (2005). School-wide positive
behavior support. In L. M. Bambara & L. Kern (Eds.), Individualized supports for
students with problem behaviors: Designing positive behavior plans (pp. 359–390). New
York, NY: Guilford Press.
Lipsey, M. W. (1998). Design sensitivity: Statistical power for applied experimental research. In
L.Bickman & D. L.Rog (Eds.). Handbook of applied social research methods (pp. 39–
68). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
McIntosh, K., Mercer, S. H., Nese, R. N. T., Ghemraoui, A., (2016). Identifying and predicting
distinct patterns of implementation in a school-wide behavior support framework.
Prevention Science, 17 (2016), pp. 992-1001, 10.1007/s11121-016-0700-1
McIntosh, K., Mercer, S. H., Nese, R. N. T., Strickland-Cohen, M. K., Kittelman, A., Hoselton,
R., & Horner, R. H. (2018). Factors predicting sustained implementation of a universal
behavior support framework. Educational Researcher, 47(2018), 307–316. https://www-
sciencedirect-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/science/article/pii/S0022440519300184?via%3Dihub#bbb0125
Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports OSEP Technical Assistance Center.
(2016a). Evaluation studies. Retrieved
from https://www.pbis.org/research/primary/evaluation-studies
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Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports OSEP Technical Assistance Center.
(2016b). SWPBIS for beginners. Retrieved from https://www.pbis.org/school/swpbis-for-
beginners
Sprague, J. R., & Golly, A. (2004). Best Behavior: Building positive behavior support in schools.
Longmont, CO: Sopris West Educational Services.
Sugai, G., & Horner, R. (2006a,). Adoption, implementation, durability, & expansion of SW-PBS.
Paper presented at the Third Annual International Association for Positive Behavior
Supports Convention. Reno, NV. Retrieved April 7, 2006,
from http://www.pbis.org/pastconferencepresentations.htm
Sugai, G., & Horner, R. (2006b). A promising approach for expanding and sustaining school-
wide positive behavior support. School Psychology Review, 35, 245–259.
Sugai, G., & Simonsen, B. (2013). PBIS History. National Assistance Center on PBIS, 1.
http://pbisaz.org/pbis-overview/pbis-history/
