Collaborative Problem SolvingBy Ross Greene

Presented by Therese Bernier Burns

Important Questions

• If a student has the skills to go about getting, escaping, and avoiding in an adaptive fashion, then why is he/she going about getting, escaping and avoiding in such a maladaptive fashion?

• Doesn’t the fact that the student is going about getting, escaping, and avoiding in a maladaptive fashion indicate that he/she doesn’t have the skills to go about getting, escaping, and avoiding in an adaptive fashion?

Theoretical (and research) underpinnings: challenging

behavior is a developmental delay

• The student is delayed in the development of crucial cognitive skills . They might include flexibility/ adaptability, frustration tolerance, and problem solving. Or they may have difficulty applying these skills when they are most needed.

Definition of Challenging Behavior

• Challenging behavior occurs when the cognitive demands being placed on the student outstrip the students capacity to respond adaptively.

• a student may exhibit a variety of challenging behaviors

• this occurs in specific situations we’ll call “unsolved problems”

Three PlansCommon Approaches to Handling

Unsolved Problems

• Plan A: Impose adult will

• Plan B: Collaborative Problem Solving

• Plan C: Drop it (for now at least)

Lagging skills and Unsolved Problems

• lagging skills are the why of incompatibility issues

• unsolved problems are the who, what, where, and when of incompatibility issues

Behind every challenging behavior is a lagging skill and a demand for that skill. In fact,

it’s an unsolved problem.

Assessment

• Involves identification of lagging skills, environmental demands, and the clash between the two (unsolved problems)

• All three elements must be reflected in the case formulation.

Assessment: ALSUP

• Includes a list of the skills frequently found lagging in students with social, emotional, and behavioral challenges

• meant to be used as a discussion guide for achieving a consensus-not simply a checklist or mechanism for quantifying

• Also includes a list of unsolved problems that may precipitate challenging episodes

Assessment: The situational analysisThe situations in which challenging

behavior occurs provide rich information about unsolved problems

• focus on who, what, when, and where• reporters may need assistance thinking situationally• story telling can help…..but adults tend to start at the

end of the story (rewind the tape)• reporters seldom go into great detail about their own

contribution to the problem• an unsolved problem doesn’t have to precipitate

challenging behavior with 100% reliability• whose unsolved problem is it?• Usually the raw material for the problem solving that is

to follow

Challenging behaviors are highly predictable

A Productive Meeting

• Focuses on consensus building, understanding, and lens-changing

• This is accomplished by focusing on lagging skills, environmental demands, and the clash between them (unsolved problems)

• Once achieved, the goal is to prioritize actions

Does any of this matter???

• He/she has bipolar disorder• He/she has bad wiring• His/her mother used illegal substances while pregnant• He/she had a forceps delivery• He/she just wants attention• He/she just wants her own way• He /she just doesn’t care• He/she just wants control• I’m not a mental health professional• He/she will be gone next year anyway• He/she is manipulating us• He/she has a bad attitude

There’s more!!• He/she’s making bad choices• He/she has mental illness• His/her fathers in jail• Have you met his mother?• You know what neighborhood he/she lives in

right?• This is a waste of time, he/she doesn’t want to do

well.• I’d love to help him/her, but I don’t have time• I really need to focus on the kids that want to learn

And what about resisters?

• I don’t have time for this• I think he/she just needs to try harder• If he/she’s not challenging all the time, doesn’t that

prove he/she does well when he/she wants?• How do you know he/she’s not just doing this for

attention?• He/she’s got the wool pulled over your eyes!• I’m not the problem, he/she is!• Ok, I get the lagging skill thing, but don’t you think

there are some things kids just have to do?• How do you know he/she’s lacking skills?• He/she’s not ready for Collaborative problem Solving.

Goals of Intervention

• create a helping relationship

• pursue unmet expectations

• solve problems

• teach lagging skills

• reduce challenging behavior

Three Plans(Common approaches to

Handling Unmet Expectations

• Plan A: Impose Adult Will– e.g., No, You must, 1,2,3

– one way to pursue unmet expectations

• Plan C: Drop it (for now at least)– e.g., ok

– One way to reduce challenging behavior

• Plan B: Collaborative Problem Solving– another way to pursue unmet

expectations– create a helping relationship– solve problems– teach lagging skills– another way to reduce challenging

behavior

Setting the student up for….?

• The student has shown that he/she needs someone to serve as his/her tour guide for solving problems

• you’re solving problems and teaching skills now so the student won’t need your help the rest of his/her life

• why don’t we just teach the kid the skills he/she’s lacking/ Why does this need to be collaborative?

Plan B Applications

• Emergency B– Takes place when an unsolved problem has already set in

motion maladaptive behavior’ can be useful for solving problems, but more useful for crisis management/de-escalation

• Proactive B (far preferable)– Takes place well BEFORE an unsolved problem sets

maladaptive behavior in motion, (crisis prevention) better timing on gathering information and solving problem durably

• Schedule an appointment? When?

It’s fine to know what to do when a student becomes

assaultive and destructive…but it’s far more important to know what to do so he/she doesn’t

become assaultive and destructive in the first place.

Plan B Entry Steps

1.Empathy

2.Define the Problem

3.Invitation

Empathy Step

• the goal of the empathy step is to gather information and achieve an understanding of the student’s concern or perspective on a given unsolved problem

• Proactive B:– begins with a neutral observation (I’ve noticed that) and an initial

inquiry (what’s up?)• Goal is to get the student talking• Usually requires drilling for information/further clarification

– drilling often focuses on the who, what, where, and when of the unsolved problem and trying to understand why the problem occurs in some settings but not others

• other clarifying statements might be how so..?, I don’t quite understand…I’m confused..Can you say more about that??

• Don’t be a genius…you’re shooting for your AHA moment…..

Empathy continued

- Stay neutral throughout

- don’t rush- the Empathy step is not a formality-you’re not ready to move on until you have a clear understanding of the students concern or perspective

- sometimes this requires going through the side door rather than the front door

- be prepared for surprises

Define the problem step

• the goal of this step is to be sure the adults concern or perspective are brought into consideration (possibly beginning with, the thing is….or my concern is…)

• definition of a problem: two concerns that haven’t been reconciled

• adults often don’t know what their concerns are– solutions are not concerns– dueling solutions= a power struggle

• the first two steps of Plan B are exclusively for concerns

• common adult concerns: safety, learning, how behavior is affecting student and others

Invitation• goal of this step is to brainstorm solutions together so as to

address both concerns• let’s the student know that their ideas count• it is crucial to let the student know you are just as vested in

getting his/her concerns met as you are your own• you should recap the two concerns so you can summarize the

problem to be solved (I wonder if there’s a way…)• the student is given the first opportunity to come up with a

solution (do you have any ideas?...but the resolution is collaborative

• don’t be a genius• ends with an agreement to return to plan B if the resolution

doesn’t stand the test of time

Definition of an Ingenious solution

• Any solution that the two parties agree is realistic and mutually satisfactory

Plan B Cheat Sheet

1. Empathy (I’ve noticed that…)1. keep it neutral2. drill/clarify well (who, what, when, where)

– 2. Define the problem (my concern is that….)– - usual adult concerns; safety, learning, how the

behavior is affecting student or others

– 3. Invitation (I wonder if there’s a way…)– -summarize the two concerns, sticking as closely

as possible to what was identified– -is the solution realistic and mutually satisfying?– -agree to return to plan B if necessary

Additional resources

• www.lostatschool.org

• www.explosivechild.com