Peer-mediated check-in/check-out for students at-risk for internalizing disorders

Evan H. Dart, Department of Psychology, The University of Southern Mississippi.
Christopher M. Furlow, Department of Psychology, The University of Southern Mississippi.
Tai A. Collins, School of Human Services, University of Cincinnati.
Elizabeth Brewer, Department of Psychology, The University of Southern Mississippi.
Frank M. Gresham, Department of Psychology, Louisiana State University.
Katherine H. Chenier, Department of Psychology, Louisiana State University.

Abstract

The present study investigated the effectiveness of peer-mediated check-in/check-out (CICO) on the internalizing behaviors of elementary school students. A nonconcurrent multiple-baseline design across participants was utilized to evaluate the intervention's effectiveness for 3 students in 1st and 2nd grade. Two 5th grade students were trained to implement CICO under the supervision of an adult intervention specialist. The peer-mediated CICO procedure was effective for 2 of the 3 participants as evidenced by moderate to large effect sizes; however, all 3 participants were identified as "at-risk" on a universal screener for internalizing problems. The results suggest peer-mediated CICO may be a resource-efficient Tier II strategy to meet the needs of students engaging in internalizing behavior within a multitiered framework of service delivery.