Training Human Service Supervisors in Aspects of PBS: Evaluation of a Statewide, Performance-Based Program

If many people with disabilities are to experience the benefits of positive behavior support (PBS), personnel in human service settings must be well versed in the values and practices of this approach. We describe a curriculum and methodology used to train supervisors in aspects of PBS on a statewide basis. The curriculum incorporated values of person-centered planning, ecologically valid practices, and principles of adult learning in conjunction with competency- and performance-based training. Selected components of the curriculum were initially evaluated experimentally with 12 supervisors. Observations during role-play activities and on-the-job applications indicated that the supervisors acquired the skills addressed in the training. Subsequently, the entire curriculum, which targeted 26 sets of skills related to PBS and involved 4 days of classroom training and 1 day of on-the-job training, was implemented with 386 supervisors across the state of South Carolina. Eighty-five percent of the supervisors successfully completed the training by demonstrating pre-established mastery-level performance for each set of skills. Acceptability measures suggested that all the trainees found the training useful, and 99.6% reported that they would recommend the training to other personnel. Results of the project are discussed in terms of the importance of training supervisors as one component of a systems-change process to enhance the practice of PBS on a large-scale basis.