Early Childhood Educator Training in and Delivery of Behavioural Support Interventions in Australian Early Childhood Education and Care Settings: Scoping Review

Behaviour Support Interventions (BSIs) play a key role in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC), supporting educators’ responses to children’s behaviour to foster prosocial behaviour and development. This scoping review followed PRISMA guidelines and aimed to characterise BSIs used in Australian ECEC. Searches were undertaken in Scopus, PsycINFO, and ERIC and data extraction focused on intervention characteristics and delivery. Six quantitative intervention studies met the inclusion criteria and were analysed using descriptive and qualitative synthesis. BSIs were associated with improvements in children’s prosocial behaviours and increased educator skills in supporting children’s behaviour. Three mechanisms underpinning behaviour change were identified: (1) play-based activities, (2) strategies that fostered children’s emotional awareness and regulation, and (3) responsive educator-child interactions. To improve outcomes, we suggest: (1) including evidence-based behaviour support in ECEC training coursework; and (2) providing practical training opportunities in ECEC environments to build sustainable, internally held educator capacity in behaviour support.