Open Science in the Field of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) present some of the greatest challenges faced by educators, and experience some of the most problematic outcomes. To increase the likelihood that students with EBD will be successful in school and in life, practitioners should implement effective interventions. Trustworthy research is the primary means to identify effective practices. Open science can be used to help verify research findings as trustworthy, as well as improve their accessibility. In this article, we discuss the open science movement and describe five open-science practices (i.e., preregistration, Registered Reports, open data and materials, open access and preprints, and open review) that may help increase the trustworthiness, efficiency, and impact of EBD research. We argue that the implementation of these practices may increase the field's capacity to identify and verify truly effective practices, and facilitate broad accessibility of research for all stakeholders; thereby improving policies and instructional practice for students with EBD.