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Modular Therapy with Academic Supports: Three Case Studies in a High Needs Setting

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Abstract

Modular therapies allow practitioners to design and deliver individualized child and adolescent psychotherapies using the elements common to multiple evidence-based treatments, but most modular therapies are derived from outpatient treatments that do not directly address academic or social impairments in schools. In three case studies conducted in an urban Title 1 public school, we examined the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of school-based modular therapy combined with elements of the Challenging Horizons Program (CHP), an academic skills training package. Adherence measures suggest that school-based practitioners successfully integrated academic training elements into their modular sessions, but only at low doses. Parent satisfaction ratings suggest that the hybrid approach was acceptable, and measures of short-term efficacy suggest reliable improvements for two of the three cases, as reported by teachers. We discuss the practice implications of these cases and offer directions for future research in school-based modular approaches.

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Notes

  1. Additional feasibility concerns, such as the degree to which therapists implemented elements competently, will be a concern after this model is validated and better understood. For this pilot study, our primary focus was clinician adherence to the constituent evidence-based protocols, so we could better understand the typical pace and scope of hybrid sessions under real-world conditions.

  2. The RCI is calculated using the formula below, where x2 is the post-treatment score, x1 is the pre-treatment score, and Sdiff is the standard error of the difference. To calculate Sdiff, we used the test–retest reliabilities reported in the BASC-3 manual (Reynolds & Kamphaus, 2015). RCI estimates exceeding ± 1.96 suggest that the change is statistically reliable at traditional alpha levels (p < .05).

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Funding

The research presented in this article was funded by a research initiation grant to the first author from East Carolina University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA

    Brandon K. Schultz, Olivia S. Lynch & Christine R. Gonzales

  2. Tidal Integrated Health, Inc., Goldsboro, NC, USA

    Rachel L. Kininger

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  1. Brandon K. Schultz
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  2. Olivia S. Lynch
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  3. Rachel L. Kininger
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  4. Christine R. Gonzales
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Correspondence to Brandon K. Schultz.

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Schultz, B.K., Lynch, O.S., Kininger, R.L. et al. Modular Therapy with Academic Supports: Three Case Studies in a High Needs Setting. Contemp School Psychol 27, 337–347 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40688-021-00391-4

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