The Effects of Positive Behavior Supports(PBS) for Students with Intellectual Disabilities: A Meta-Analysis of Single Case Design Studies

This study aimed to explore (a) the roles of Positive Behavior Supports(PBS) as a evidence based practice and (b) its use in classroom/school settings for students with intellectual disabilities. A random-effects model was applied for 25 studies that meet inclusion/exclusion criteria and Tau-U values were caculated to estimate effect sizes according to each moderator (i.e., school level, type of intervention, number of sessions, disability severity, and gender). Results showed that (a) PBS based interventions showed strong effect sizes for both problematic behaviors and alternative behaviors; (b) the strongest effect size was found in elementary level, followed by middle and high school level;(c) both individual intervention and class-wide/school-side approach were effective; and (d) there was no difference in the effect sizes when it comes to gender. Based on the findings, the use of PBS in classroom and school settings for students with intellectual disabilites and future directions for research and practice were discuseed.