Papers by Willy-Tore Mørch
Research in Developmental Disabilities, 1992
In 1988, Norway's parliamen1 instituted the systematic deins1itutionalization of Ihe nation's hea... more In 1988, Norway's parliamen1 instituted the systematic deins1itutionalization of Ihe nation's health care system for mentally retarded persons. Professionals have recognized that deins1iru1ionalization will succeed only if treatment personnel can provide effective 1reatmen1 for their clienrs. A study is presented in which 152 hands-on staff members were assigned to 76 clien1s with moderate to severe menial retardation. The study asked whether sraff training in behaviorally oriented treatment and assessment would produce greater improvement in the behavior of clients and s1aff than would (raining in treatment alone. Data failed to support this hypothesis, but did provide clear evidence (ha1 borh clients and staff improved with staff training. The assessmen of such programs is seen 10 be of great importance in view of the fac1 that deins(itu1ionalization will leave the majority of mentally retarded clients in Norway in (he care of persons who have received such limi1edforms of training. The first organized educational system for the mildly mentally retarded in Norway was established near Oslo in 1874 and was called the Afternoon School for Spiritually and Intellectually Abnormal Children. This was a partially private, partially public school program funded by A larger version of this study was submitted to Lhe Department of Psychology at the University of Oslo by the first author in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Psychology. The authors appreciate the help in designing this research offered by Douglas Anglin and extensive editorial comments by Tristram Smith, 0. Ivar Lovaas, and Donald M. Baer. This research was supported by grants from J.E. Isberg's Fond and Oslo Sanitetsforening. Requests for reprints should be sent to Willy-Tore March,
http://isrctn.org/>, Jan 17, 2013
The Lancet Psychiatry, 2019
Background: Childhood conduct problems are a costly public health problem, five times more common... more Background: Childhood conduct problems are a costly public health problem, five times more common in socially disadvantaged groups. Untreated, they have a poor prognosis, with increasing gaps between socioeconomic groups, and high rates of subsequent criminality. The Incredible Years (IY) is a high-quality parenting programme as recommended by NICE for reducing conduct problems, and is widely disseminated in Europe. Many trials show IY to be effective, but the potential effects on social inequality of parenting interventions are unknown. This matters since some behavioural interventions (e.g. smoking cessation programmes), while beneficial overall, can widen inequality gaps. Since single trials and aggregate-level meta-analysis are ill-equipped for examining differential intervention (moderator) effects, we pooled individual-level trial data. Method: Individual participant data (IPD) meta-analysis of a near-complete set of randomised trials of European IY parenting programmes (N=1696; 15 trials eligible; 7% [1/15], data unavailable; 7% [1/15] lacked primary outcome). Children were aged 2-10 years (M 5.1; 30% [492/1651] ethnic minority; 58% [931/1614] low-income). Primary outcome was child conduct problems, using Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory (ECBI-I). Moderators were analysed using multilevel modelling with multiple imputation. Findings: IY led to an overall reduction in child conduct problems (13.5 points on ECBI-I, 95% CI 10.9 to 16.1). There was no evidence for differential effects by family disadvantage (poverty, lone/teen parenthood, joblessness; low education), or ethnic minority status. Interpretation: This world-first IPD meta-analysis of parenting trials, the largest pooled data set to date, found no evidence for differential effects by social disadvantage, suggesting IY is unlikely to widen socioeconomic inequalities in conduct problems. Furthermore, the programme may be an important tool for reducing social disparities and improving poor long-updates and substantially alters the picture of inequality effects found in influential prior aggregate-level meta-analyses. Furthermore, if the effects are maintained over time (initial studies suggest they are), then the programme may reduce the increasing social gap in untreated conduct problems, with the social difficulties and criminality that otherwise ensue. If it does so, this could be an important tool for promoting equity. In the meantime, clinicians, social care providers, and commissioners can be reassured that the programme is similarly effective for families from different backgrounds.
Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to explore whether the changes in externalising behaviour f... more Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to explore whether the changes in externalising behaviour for young aggressive children differ between two evidence-based parent training (PT) programmes after treatment. The treatment formats between these programmes differ, and the authors were particularly interested in whether this influenced the results for participants with co-occurring problems (child variables such as heightened levels of attention and internalising problems, and parental variables such as marital status and education) and the consequent additional risk of poorer treatment outcomes. Design/methodology/approach -A comparison of the individual treatment programme "Parent Management Training -Oregon model" (PMTO) and the group intervention programme "The Incredible Years" (IY) basic training sessions. Outcomes were explored in matched samples from two earlier Norwegian replication studies. The participants were matched on pre-treatment characteristics us...
SUMMARYA treatment program based on behavior theory was applied to the treatment of a 12 year old... more SUMMARYA treatment program based on behavior theory was applied to the treatment of a 12 year old girl in an institution for mentally retarded children.Various forms of rewards were used to strengthen appropriate social behavior, while social inappropriate behavior led to loss of various privileges.During 9 months of treatment her prosocial behavior improved markedly.
Changes in the aggressive behaviour of Norwegian children following parent training This study re... more Changes in the aggressive behaviour of Norwegian children following parent training This study records the change in aggressive behaviour of children participating in a Norwegian study based on the treatment program «The Incredible Years». The «Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory» was used to measure behaviour of children from pre-treatment stage until one-year after treatment. Ninety-seven children from four to eight years old as well as their mothers participated in the study. Chi-square and F-tests were used to determine whether treatment outcomes were moderated by variables such as maternal age, maternal level of education, marital status and contact with the child welfare services. The study found that approximately 63% of children participating in the study experienced promising and lasting improvement in their behaviour. Maternal education moderated treatment outcome and mothers with less education reported less favourable treatment outcomes. The importance of identifying childre...
Background: Childhood conduct problems are a costly public health problem, five times commoner in... more Background: Childhood conduct problems are a costly public health problem, five times commoner in socially disadvantaged groups. Untreated, they have a poor prognosis, with increasing gaps between socio-economic groups, and high rates of subsequent criminality. The Incredible Years (IY) is a high-quality parenting programme as recommended by NICE for reducing conduct problems, and is widely disseminated in Europe. Many trials show IY to be effective, but the potential effects on social inequality of parenting interventions are unknown. This matters since some behavioural interventions (e.g. smoking cessation programmes), while beneficial overall, can widen inequality gaps. Since single trials and aggregate-level meta-analysis are ill-equipped for examining differential intervention (moderator) effects, we pooled individual-level trial data. Method: Individual participant data (IPD) meta-analysis of a near-complete set of randomised trials of European IY parenting programmes (k=13; N...
European child & …, 2009
In the present study, predictors of persistent conduct problems among children aged 4-8 years wer... more In the present study, predictors of persistent conduct problems among children aged 4-8 years were investigated in a randomized controlled trial 1 year after treatment with the Incredible Years parent training program (PT), or combined parent training and child treatment (PT ? CT). Data were collected before and after treatment and at a 1-year follow-up. Pre-treatment child characteristics predicting persistent conduct problems in the child at the 1-year follow-up were high levels of internalizing and aggression problems as reported by mothers. The only family characteristic predicting persistence of child conduct problems was having contacts with child protection services. Clinicians and researchers need to closely monitor and identify children with conduct problems not responding to parent training programs. These individuals and their families are likely to need further support.
Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research
2 assessments scores). All covariates gender, grade, ethnicity, special education, how well the t... more 2 assessments scores). All covariates gender, grade, ethnicity, special education, how well the teacher knew the student, and number of hours the teachers taught the student each week, and number of students in each class were statistically accounted for in the different multilevel analyses. a original data b imputed data *p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001.
Development and Psychopathology
Children vary in the extent to which they benefit from parenting programs for conduct problems. H... more Children vary in the extent to which they benefit from parenting programs for conduct problems. How does parental mental health change if children benefit less or more? We assessed whether changes in conduct problems and maternal depressive symptoms co-occur following participation in the Incredible Years parenting program. We integrated individual participant data from 10 randomized trials (N = 1280; children aged 2–10 years) and distinguished latent classes based on families' baseline and post-test conduct problems and maternal depressive symptoms, using repeated measures latent class analysis (RMLCA) and latent transition analysis (LTA). Classes differed mainly in severity of conduct problems and depression (RMLCA; 4 classes). Conduct problems reduced in all classes. Depressive symptoms did not change in most classes, except in a class of families where conduct problems and depression were particularly severe. Incredible Years led to a greater likelihood of families with part...
Journal of Child and Family Studies
International Review of Research in Mental Retardation, 1993
Can imitation of instructions help children with autism learn instruction-following faster than i... more Can imitation of instructions help children with autism learn instruction-following faster than if traditional prompt/fading procedures are applied? Will mastering such skills lead to automatic transfer to expressive labelling? The subject was a four year old girl diagnosed with autism, she was able to imitate single words and was mildly mentally retarded (IQ=54). Training phases were conducted in the following order BAAB. Four objects were included in each phase. In the B phases traditional training procedures were used (e.g., pointing and position prompts) in order to teach the child to point at the instructed objects. In the A phases the child was taught to imitate the same type of instruction, e.g., "Point to the car," and then to point at the specified object. If necessary, the behaviour was prompted by removing all other objects from the table. The dependent variable was the number of trials in the A and B phases. Each phase was terminated when the child's perfor...
Scandinavian Journal of Behaviour Therapy, 1978
Overkorreksjonsprosedyrer er i de senere arene blitt brukt i behandlingen av forskjellige typer p... more Overkorreksjonsprosedyrer er i de senere arene blitt brukt i behandlingen av forskjellige typer problematferder. Den eksisterende litteratur omfatter kasusrapporter og kortere empiriske studier. Tiden syntes a vaere inne for en diskusjon av overkorreksjon bade med hensyn til beskrivelse og kategorisering samt drafting av hvilke kontrollfaktorer for atferd som kan vaere virksomme under gjennomføringen av prosedyrene. Den foreliggende analysen syntes a
European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2009
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Papers by Willy-Tore Mørch