Social-Emotional Assessment & Learning News Post

How Improving Self-Awareness Helps Youth Build Coping Skills

Elizabeth Porter2026-09-23T21:57:25+00:00

September 23, 2026, Durham, NC - In our last article, we explored what mindfulness is and why it matters for young people today. Mindfulness involves a set of practical skills that can help youth notice what they are experiencing, understand how stress affects them, and respond to challenges in healthy ways. However, for many adults who work with children and teens, one important question remains: How do you teach mindfulness to young people in a way they can understand and use? One helpful approach is to organize mindfulness education in ways that represent the four foundations of mindfulness: awareness of the [...]

How Improving Self-Awareness Helps Youth Build Coping SkillsElizabeth Porter2026-09-23T21:57:25+00:00

What is Mindfulness and Why Does It Matter for Youth Today?

Elizabeth Porter2026-09-10T18:11:04+00:00

September 09, 2026, Durham, NC – Over the past several years, many adults who work with young people have noticed the same thing: today's youth are facing increasing stress and anxiety. Whether you are a teacher, youth program leader, counselor, coach, mentor, clinician, or parent, you may have seen children and teens struggle with worries, frustration, emotional outbursts, difficulty focusing, or feeling overwhelmed by everyday challenges. Many youth are navigating academic pressures, social media influences, family stress, and a constantly changing world, all while they are still learning how to understand and manage their own emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. As schools, [...]

What is Mindfulness and Why Does It Matter for Youth Today?Elizabeth Porter2026-09-10T18:11:04+00:00

iRT Researchers Utilize Their Expertise in the Facial Action Coding System

Elizabeth Porter2024-07-11T18:52:05+00:00

July 11, 2024, Durham, NC – Social-emotional skills are essential to the development of healthy social behavior. Being able to identify and understand one’s own and another’s feelings, as well as regulate one’s positive and negative emotions, is related to positive peer interactions and school achievement. iRT has created several manualized, evidenced-based intervention programs for children and adolescents that focus on improving social-emotional abilities for delivery in elementary, middle, high, or afterschool settings. Consistent with our mission to promote social and emotional well-being in children, adolescents, and adults, iRT’s researchers have expanded their expertise using the Facial Action Coding System (FACS). FACS [...]

iRT Researchers Utilize Their Expertise in the Facial Action Coding SystemElizabeth Porter2024-07-11T18:52:05+00:00

Addressing the Nationwide Addiction Crisis with Media Literacy Education, Mentoring, Mindfulness, and More

Elizabeth Porter2024-01-21T01:00:53+00:00

January 17, 2024, Durham, NC – The federal government and medical facilities across the United States have made substantial efforts to impede growth of the national opioid crisis, but trends in substance use have evolved in recent years making it increasingly difficult to thwart the addiction crisis. Updates on the decades-long opioid epidemic and prevention efforts have consistently made headlines as millions of Americans have faced opioid use disorders in the last three years. However, as rates of cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl use continue to climb, it is vital to spread awareness of the pervasiveness of polysubstance use, in addition to [...]

Addressing the Nationwide Addiction Crisis with Media Literacy Education, Mentoring, Mindfulness, and MoreElizabeth Porter2024-01-21T01:00:53+00:00

iRT To Develop New Mindfulness Program For Youth With 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome

IRT Inc2023-01-11T21:26:01+00:00

iRT was awarded a grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) to develop an online mindfulness training program, specifically developed for use by adolescents with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11DS). iRT was awarded a grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) to develop...

iRT To Develop New Mindfulness Program For Youth With 22q11.2 Deletion SyndromeIRT Inc2023-01-11T21:26:01+00:00

iRT Researchers and Collaborators Share Research Findings at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence

IRT Inc2023-01-11T21:30:38+00:00

Research Scientists at innovation Research and Training are continuously working on advancements in research pertaining to improving outcomes for children and adolescents. Some of iRT’s recent findings in the field of adolescent development were presented at the Society for Research on Adolescents (SRA) Biennial Meeting by Senior Research Scientist Dr. Janis Kupersmidt, along with iRT...

iRT Researchers and Collaborators Share Research Findings at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research on AdolescenceIRT Inc2023-01-11T21:30:38+00:00

Providing Pre-Match Training to Mentees Leads to More Realistic Expectations

IRT Inc2023-01-11T19:24:48+00:00

Mentoring programs understand that effectively training their mentors before they enter into a mentoring relationship is vital to producing positive outcomes for both the mentee and their mentoring relationship. Pre-match mentor training helps to establish higher quality and more enduring matches. However, mentoring programs might be overlooking an important opportunity to prevent possible...

Providing Pre-Match Training to Mentees Leads to More Realistic ExpectationsIRT Inc2023-01-11T19:24:48+00:00

How does someone decide to be aggressive? Findings reported at SRCD special topics conference from two studies on new multimedia, Web-based assessment software.

IRT Inc2023-01-11T19:28:43+00:00

Drs. Janis Kupersmidt Rebecca Stelter, and Alison Parker from innovation Research & Training (iRT), presented a poster entitled, “SIP-AP: Web-based Assessment of Social information Processing in Children and Adolescents,” at the Society for Research in Child Development Special Topic Meeting: Technology and Media in Children’s Development on October 29, 2016...

How does someone decide to be aggressive? Findings reported at SRCD special topics conference from two studies on new multimedia, Web-based assessment software.IRT Inc2023-01-11T19:28:43+00:00

Two IRT Scientists Presented at the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) Special Topic Meeting in Irvine, California

IRT Inc2020-12-29T16:53:09+00:00

Durham, NC (October 28, 2016) - Drs. Rebecca Stelter and Janis Kupersmidt presented a poster, entitled “Addressing the Connectivity Challenge in Data Collection with Children and Families,” at the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) Special Topic Meeting: Technology and Media in Children’s Development in Irvine, California on October 28, 2016. The conference...

Two IRT Scientists Presented at the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) Special Topic Meeting in Irvine, CaliforniaIRT Inc2020-12-29T16:53:09+00:00

iRT Partners with UNC-Chapel Hill on Prestigious Internship Program

IRT Inc2020-12-29T16:54:58+00:00

Durham, NC, April 13, 2015—innovation Research & Training (iRT), a behavioral sciences research company, today announced an alliance with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for a prestigious psychology internship program. Durham, NC, April 13, 2015—innovation Research & Training (iRT), a behavioral sciences research company, today announced an alliance...

iRT Partners with UNC-Chapel Hill on Prestigious Internship ProgramIRT Inc2020-12-29T16:54:58+00:00