Blueprints
Promising Programs
Program Overview
I Can Problem Solve (ICPS), fomerly
Interpersonal Cognitive Problem Solving, is a school-based
intervention that trains children in generating a
variety of solutions to interpersonal problems, considering
the consequences of these solutions, and recognizing
thoughts, feelings, and motives that generate problem
situations. By teaching children to think, rather
than what to think, the program changes thinking styles
and, as a result, enhances children’s social
adjustment, promotes pro-social behavior, and decreases
impulsivity and inhibition.
Program Targets
Although the program is appropriate for all children,
it is especially effective for young (age 4-5), poor,
and urban students who may be at highest risk for
behavioral dysfunctions and interpersonal maladjustment.
Program Content
The program was originally designed for use in nursery
school and kindergarten, but it has also been successfully
implemented with children in grades 5 and 6. Throughout
the intervention, instructors utilize pictures, role-playing,
puppets, and group interaction to help develop students’
thinking skills, and children’s own lives and
problems are used as examples when teachers demonstrate
problem-solving techniques.
With concepts being similar for all studied age-groups, small groups of 6-10 children receive training for approximately 3 months. The intervention begins with 10-12 lessons teaching preschool students basic skills and problem-solving language. For example, children learn word concepts such as "not" (e.g., acting or not acting); "some/all" (solutions may succeed with one person but not all); "or" (discovering alternative solutions); "if...then" (learning consequences of actions); and "same/different" (thinking of multiple solutions).
The next 20 lessons focus on identifying one’s
own feelings and becoming sensitive to others’
emotions. Students learn to recognize people’s
feelings in problem situations and realize that they
can influence others’ responses.
The last 15 lessons utilize role-playing games and
dialogue to promote problem-solving skills. Students
generate solutions to hypothetical problem situations
and consider the possible consequences to their decisions.
Program Outcomes
An evaluation of ICPS that included nursery
and kindergarten students revealed significant benefits
for intervention students. Immediately following and
one year after the program ended, ICPS children, compared
to control students, demonstrated:
- Less impulsive and inhibited classroom behavior,
and
- Better problem-solving skills.
A five-year study of inner-city, low income children in kindergarten demonstrated that children trained in kindergarten or trained in kindergarten and first grade, compared to control students, had:
- Improved classroom behavior and problem-solving
skills, even 3-4 years after the program.
A replication with fifth and sixth grade students
found that ICPS children, compared to a control group,
demonstrated:
- More positive, prosocial behaviors;
- Healthier relationships with peers; and
- Better problem-solving skills.
