KITS: School Readiness in Foster Care Efficacy Trial

这项研究的总体目标是对一种预防性药物进行随机有效性试验。 干预措施-过渡到学校的孩子（KITS）计划-以提高社会情感和学术学校 学龄前寄养儿童的准备情况。寄养儿童面临着很大的风险，为穷人的社会和学术学校 结果。由于他们早期的逆境经历，这些孩子可能有特殊的脆弱性， 降低了成功过渡到学校的可能性。此前的大量研究表明， 逆境与关键神经系统（特别是前额叶皮层）功能的改变有关 功能和下丘脑-垂体-肾上腺轴活动）与自我调节和应激反应有关。改变 在这些系统中，可能会干扰儿童与同龄人的关系，保持集中注意力， 方向，并学习学术技能。此外，由于这些儿童可能经历过多次 生活过渡，他们可能处于不利地位，在照顾者参与学校，一个关键方面， 早期学校的成功寄养儿童（N = 200）将在春季进入幼儿园之前招募， 随机分配到干预（“= 100）和比较条件（“= 100）。KITS干预 包括四个组成部分：（a）28次儿童治疗游戏小组会议，以促进 自我调节、社交和应急识字技能;（B）一个6节的心理教育支助小组，以促进 照顾者参与儿童的紧急识字和上学，并使用有效的育儿技巧; (c)有系统的发展筛选和转介;及（d）以家庭和学校为本的行为咨询。的 干预与进入幼儿园的过渡相吻合。多方法、多主体评估儿童的 社会情绪准备和识字技能将在基线、幼儿园入学和幼儿园后进行。 我们将研究干预对入学准备和幼儿园成果的直接影响。我们还将 评估干预效果是否通过应激反应和调节机制介导， 照顾者变量。最后，我们将测试儿童和背景特征的调节效应，包括早期 逆境（产前/新生儿健康，虐待史和安置史），儿童认知功能，以及 在研究过程中的位置转换。本研究的另一个探索性目的是检查 干预对儿童子样本一年级和二年级结果的影响。组比较和 纵向增长模型将允许对假设进行评估。

The overarching goal of the proposed research is to conduct a randomized efficacy trial of a preventive intervention-the Kids in Transition to School (KITS) program-to enhance socioemotional and academic school readiness among preschool-aged foster children. Foster children are at great risk for poor social and academic school outcomes. Because of their experiences of early adversity, these children may have particular vulnerabilities that decrease the likelihood of a successful transition to school. Extensive prior research has shown that chronic early adversity is associated with alterations in the functioning of key neural systems (specifically, prefrontal cortex function and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity)related to self-regulation and stress reactivity. Alterations in these systems may interfere with children's abilities to relate to peers, to maintain focused attention, to follow directions, and to learn academic skills. Additionally, because these children are likely to have experienced multiple living transitions, they may be at a disadvantage in terms of caregiver involvement in school, a critical aspect of early school success. Foster children (N = 200) will be recruited in the spring before they enter kindergarten and will be randomly assigned to the intervention (" = 100) and comparison conditions (" = 100). The KITS intervention includes four components: (a) 28-sesssions of child therapeutic play groups to facilitate the development of self-regulatory, social, and emergent literacy skills; (b) a 6-session psychoeducational support group to promote caregiver involvement in the child's emergent literacy and schooling and the use of effective parenting techniques; (c) systematic developmental screening and referral; and (d) home- and school-based behavioral consultation. The intervention coincides with the transition into kindergarten. Multi-method, multi-agent assessments of the children's socioemotional readiness and literacy skills will be conducted at baseline, kindergarten entry, and postkindergarten. We will examine the direct effects of the intervention on school readiness and kindergarten outcomes. We will also assess whether intervention effects are mediated through mechanisms of stress reactivity and regulation and caregiver variables. Finally, we will test for moderator effects of child and contextual characteristics including early adversity (prenatal/neonatal health, maltreatment history and placement history), child cognitive functioning, and placement transitions during the course of the study. An additional exploratory aim of the study is to examine intervention effects on first and second grade outcomes for subsamples of children. Group comparisons and longitudinal growth modeling will allow for evaluation of hypotheses.