Are you looking for a trauma-informed way to address concerning behavior?
Behavior charts, rewards, and punishments don't work, and we know why. Traditional discipline is broken. It doesn’t result in improved behavior or relationships between adults and children. The Collaborative Problem Solving® approach is an effective form of relational discipline that reduces undesired behavior and caregiver stress while building skills, empathy, and relationships between adults and children.
Join Dr. J. Stuart Ablon and Elizabeth Buchholz
to learn what Collaborative Problem Solving® is all about!
Collaborative Problem Solving® (CPS) is an evidence-based, neuro-biologically informed, trauma-sensitive, and child and family centered approach. It aims to identify the root causes of undesired behavior and unmet expectations, understanding that these are often due to lagging skills. Through this understanding, CPS empowers you to work collaboratively with children to find effective solutions.
Revolutionize your professional and personal approach to addressing concerning behavior
This beginner-level, self-paced course for clinical, residential, therapeutic day programs, and partial hospitals introduces the philosophy and mindset of Collaborative Problem Solving® (CPS), an evidence-based, trauma-informed approach that helps children meet expectations, reduces undesired behavior, builds skills, and strengthens relationships with adults.
Upon completing this course, learners will be able to:
- Recognize situations where Lagging Thinking Skills can lead to Undesired Behaviors to inform assessment.
- Tell the difference between the three options in the Collaborative Problem Solving approach to respond to challenging situations, and how they pursue different intervention goals.
- Identify how using the Collaborative Problem Solving approach can lead to better, more positive interactions and build a trusting therapeutic relationship.
This self-paced course is taught through video examples and cases, recorded lecture, a downloadable reference page, and a quiz. The course will take approximately 2 hours to complete.
This course is your first step towards creating a more compassionate, effective care environment.
Earn CE Credit or Certificates of Completion
Think:Kids/MGH is an Accredited Provider of Continuing Education (CE) credit.
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Social workers taking this course may register to receive 2 General Credits.
- Think:Kids at Massachusetts General Hospital, provider #1960, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 8/28/2025 - 8/28/2028.
- Licensed Mental Health Counselors taking this course may register to receive 2 NBCC credit hours.
- Think:Kids at Massachusetts General Hospital has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7844. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Think:Kids at Massachusetts General Hospital is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
- All other learners may register to receive a Certificate of Completion for a 2-hour on-demand course.
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You may submit your Certificate of Completion to your governing body to see if you may obtain credit.
To earn CE credit/hours or Certificates of Completion, learners must complete each course segment in full, pass the quiz at the end with a score of 80% or better within 10 tries, and complete an evaluation survey. Partial credit will not be given for incomplete courses, quizzes, or surveys. Certificates of Completion and CE Certificates will be emailed to learners who meet these requirements within 30 days. If you do not receive your certificate or if you have any questions, please contact us at ThinkKidsInfo@MGB.org.
Course Curriculum
Meet Your Instructors
You may contact Think:Kids or your instructors with any questions at ThinkKidsInfo@MGB.org.
J. Stuart Ablon, Ph.D.
Dr. Stuart Ablon is the Founder and Director of Think:Kids in the Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital. An award-winning psychologist, Dr. Ablon is Associate Professor and the Thomas G. Stemberg Endowed Chair in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He is the author of three books, Changeable, hand-picked by Malcolm Gladwell, Adam Grant, Dan Pink, and Susan Cain for their Next Big Idea Club, The School Discipline Fix, and Treating Explosive Kids: The Collaborative Problem Solving Approach.
Dr. Ablon received his doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of California at Berkeley and completed his training at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. One of the world’s top-rated thought-leaders and keynote speakers, Dr. Ablon teaches educators, parents, clinicians, managers, and leaders a very different approach to understanding and addressing challenging behavior of all types and in all people. Dr. Ablon has helped hundreds of organizations throughout the world implement the Collaborative Problem Solving approach.
Elizabeth Buchholz, MNS
Elizabeth is a Certified Trainer and Consultant and works with learners across the Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) learning continuum. She provides training and coaching for organizations, implementation consultation sessions, and facilitates learning through the Certification program.
Elizabeth has experience working directly with youth and families using Collaborative Problem Solving in residential treatment, private day schools, and treatment foster care. As an Organization Learning Manager for a statewide nonprofit, she provided training and consultation in Collaborative Problem Solving and Implementation to staff and families in each of these settings. Elizabeth also led the direct care team in a large residential facility using the CPS approach as both a human resources management approach and as the guiding philosophy for interacting with and treating clients and families.
Elizabeth received a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice with a minor in Philosophy and a master’s degree in Nonprofit Studies with a concentration in Implementation Science and Trauma Informed Care from the University of Richmond.
Additional Information
Course created: March 2024
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This school is for educational purposes only. Think:Kids does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any health-related questions you may have.
Please refer to the Mass General Brigham disclaimer for more information: https://www.massgeneral.org/notices/disclaimer
Mail only: 125 Nashua Street 7th Floor, Suite 7100, Boston, MA 02114 | Voicemail: +1-617-643-6030 | ThinkKidsInfo@MGB.org