A scientific problem-solving approach to developing accountability procedures for school psychologists.

Discusses the use of evaluations of school psychological services in improving service delivery and professional development. The steps of a scientific problem-solving approach to accountability are outlined in terms of problem definition, generation of alternatives, decision making, implementation and outcome evaluation, dissemination of results, and meta-evaluation. The use of this model is illustrated by its application to the assessment of the evaluation, consultation, and referral services provided by a school psychologist. (38 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Integrated psychological services in the Greeley-Evans public schools.

Integrated school psychological services were implemented 12 years ago in the Greeley-Evans Public Schools by combining the positions of school psychologist and school social worker and placing each professional in an elementary school full-time. After 5 years, services were expanded to secondary schools such that all schools had a full-time school psychologist. Using Bennett's (1988) model for the evaluation of alternative services to determine success in meeting stated goals, a number of positive outcomes were achieved. A time-use survey indicated increased involvement with a variety of interventions for school psychologists. The results of a consumer satisfaction questionnaire given to teachers, administrators, and support personnel also suggested positive perceptions of the new role. Additionally, placement of students with significant emotional disturbance decreased over this time period relative to a 34% student enrollment increase. It is hoped that the long-term implementation of an alternative school psychological services model such as this one will encourage others to enact ecologically responsive services relative to their unique systems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Formalized psychological services in state education programs.

In recent years "state regulations have played a major part in determining the nature of local school requirements" for psychologists. States having formally legislated provisions for school psychologists, states formally recognizing qualifications of school psychologists, professional training requirements for different levels of persons rendering psychological service in schools, and required supervised practicum or internship experience are discussed. The certification of school psychologists as teachers, the renewal of certification of school psychologists, the kinds of psychological services provided or used, the apparent absence of a sensitivity to a need for school psychological services, and the various titles by which psychologists are designated in school law or official statements are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Organizing for evaluation of high school psychological services: A team approach.

Describes the team approach to organizing for evaluation of high school psychological services and illustrates its application in the initiation of evaluation activities of 133 students in an urban high school. Use of the team approach allows professional staff, pupils, and parents to be represented when program evaluation is introduced into a system so that evaluation can be incorporated into the routine of a public school organization in a practical way. The approach is composed of 5 phases: clarification of the evaluation problem, evaluation planning, evaluation implementation, analysis and dissemination of the evaluation information, and assessment of evaluation activities and outcomes. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mothers' attitudes toward seeking help for their children from school and private psychologists.

What inhibits parents from seeking psychological help for their children? This study examined the attitudes of mothers of school-age children toward seeking psychological help from school psychological services and from private psychologists. Mothers express greater and more intense worries in relation to seeking help from school psychological services as compared to private psychologists. Hypothetical vignettes about a problematic child also showed that mothers prefer to refer both their own child and that of a friend to a private psychologist. Reducing the threat aroused by public sector psychologists should increase the utilization of psychological help for children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Witmer's contribution to school psychological services.

Lightner Witmer's contributions to school psychology are described in the areas of clinical method, case conceptualization, technological development, training, the connection of psychology to schooling, and his serving as a professional model for others. Despite the waning popularity of his work, much of it remains relevant to contemporary school psychological services. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychologists in secondary schools in the 1990s: Current functions, training, and job satisfaction.

Surveyed 173 school psychologists serving secondary schools concerning their current roles and functions, training needs, and general job satisfaction. Results revealed that many school psychologists in secondary schools are providing a wide variety of services, including direct (e.g., counseling) and indirect (e.g., consultation) services. Approximately three-quarters of the Ss reported being satisfied with their work in secondary schools. Job satisfaction was related to increased time spent in intervention-related activities and decreased time spent in psychological assessment activities. Data reflected encouraging findings regarding the scope of school psychological services in secondary settings but also underscored the need for diversified training of school psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teachers' perceptions of school psychology: A comparison of regular and special education teacher ratings.

A total of 1533 regular education and special education teachers from eight school districts in four states rated their knowledge of and satisfaction with school psychological services. Perceived helpfulness of psychological services to teachers and children was also assessed. Finally, both groups rated their perceptions of school psychologists' roles versus school counselor roles. Regular education teachers, compared to special education teachers, reported less knowledge of school psychology, perceived school psychologists as less helpful to teachers, and reported lower satisfaction with school psychology services. These reports may have been influenced by the amount of contact each teacher had with school psychologists. Both teacher groups had a limited understanding of the broad roles and functions of school psychologists, and both groups viewed school counselors as delivering more services than school psychologists. Implications of these findings with regard to school psychology reform efforts are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Legislative mandates: Implications for changes in school psychology training programs.

Public Laws 93-380 and 94-142, as well as many state statutes that assure full educational opportunities for all handicapped children, have directly affected school psychological services. School psychologists' skills in diagnosis, intervention, and remediation are being increasingly called on to meet the educational needs of handicapped children. Because of federal and state legislation, school psychology training programs need to provide their students with additional course work and/or field experiences to prepare them for the changes in role demands. Practitioners need professional continuing education programs to assure that their skills are also adequate to provide psychological services to all handicapped school children. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A critical appraisal of intelligent testing with the WISC-III: Introduction to the series.

This special issue is intended to provide professionals and other members of the policy-shaping community with information from which judgments concerning the appropriate role of IQ testing in the delivery of school psychological services can be formed. In Kaufman's (1994) most recent rendition of his intelligent testing series, Intelligent testing with the WISC-III, he devotes a major section of the first chapter to his presumed defense of IQ testing against criticisms that have emerged within the school psychology literature. Are the inferences derived by Kaufman's methods of WISC-III test interpretation of sufficient quality to support their use in professional problem solving and decision making? Are they reliable? Are they accurate? Do they contribute to beneficial outcomes for children? These are guiding questions that represent underlying themes for this special issue. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perception of case conduct as a means of evaluating school psychological services.

Developed a 40-item questionnaire to survey the opinions of all possible recipients of school psychological services in a small rural school system (N?=?39). Questionnaire items were grouped into 6 broad categories (personal/professional qualities of the consultant, teacher involvement, assessment, written communication, parents, students). Results are discussed in terms of respondent satisfaction by category. The questionnaire should be useful for stimulating ideas for in-service training, as a reflection of the degree of satisfaction with the consultative process, and as an overall guide for improving consultative services. (7 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Improving the program-planning skills of school psychologists: Use of performance feedback.

Reports results of an investigation that suggest the potential utility of performance feedback for improving the capability of school psychologists for planning psychological service programs. Nine school psychologists were randomly assigned to receive performance feedback by the director of school psychological services through 1 of 3 means: no feedback, weekly feedback, monthly feedback. Results indicate that both weekly and monthly feedback provided by the director resulted in greater improvement and maintenance of program-planning skills. (11 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Making decisions in planning for delivery of school psychological services.

Describes the multiattribute utility (MAUT) method, its application to planning for the delivery of school psychological services, and future directions for determining the usefulness of the approach. The MAUT method is a 10-step approach used by school psychologists that allows a planning situation to be structured by disaggregating the essential elements of the decision and discussing available program alternatives. Thus, the planning focus is narrowed to exact areas of agreement and disagreement among a decision-making unit such as a group of school psychologists. Examples are provided of dealing with handicapped children mainstreamed into regular schools and planning activities for socially maladjusted adolescents in a special day school. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social reforms and the future of school practice: Implications for American psychology.

Social reforms in American education are setting the stage for a paradigm shift in our nation's schools. The convergence of education and health care reform and the movement in the human services arena toward service integration models provide an unprecedented opportunity to redefine psychological services related to schools for the next century. Whereas school psychological services historically have been linked to changes in special education legislation, social reforms in education and health care that emphasize educational achievement and whole-child development offer promise for expanding and enhancing the roles of psychologists whose practices relate to schools and children. This article explores the foundations for change and highlights critical areas in which psychological practice in the schools may develop in the 1990s and beyond. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

School psychologists and Public Law 94-142: A clarification of implications.

Discusses the article by J. B. Franzoni and W. Jones (1981) in which they emphasized the need for special training of school psychologists in the administration and interpretation of projective techniques for diagnosing severe emotional disturbance. It is pointed out here that the current trend in school-based assessment is toward use of a behavioral assessment model to evaluate not only emotional disturbance but also other handicapping conditions. Using this model the child is evaluated in his or her environment. It is also noted that school psychologists can move away from a role that is restricted to testing by taking advantage of laws that allow them to provide psychological services to staff members, parents, and children. (3 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Causal attributions for school-related problems: Teacher perceptions and teacher feedback.

Conducted 2 studies with a total of 54 teachers to examine classroom teachers' attributions for severe school problems. In both studies, teachers who had referred a student for psychological services were asked to assign causality for the referral problem. In Exp II, teacher praise and criticism of referred students were examined as functions of causal attributions. Both studies show that teachers held student factors more responsible for classroom problems than teacher factors and that teachers' attributions varied somewhat for learning vs behavior problems. Exp II indicated that problem students perceived as lacking motivation were criticized more often by their teachers. Relationship of the results to attribution theory and teacher attribution research is discussed, and further research conducted in naturalistic settings is recommended. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training school psychologists: Some perspectives on a competency-based behavioral consultation model.

A behavioral consultation training model is presented that articulates training competency and service goals in school psychology. The model promotes evaluation of the competencies of school psychologists and their impact on the settings in which consultation services are provided. It also focuses on learning and adjustment problems in the socialization process and works on specific target behaviors. Problem-solving strategies are developed in 4 stages: (a) problem identification, (b) problem analysis, (c) intervention, and (d) evaluation. Difficulties encountered in implementing the model are discussed. (60 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training school psychological services directors in organizational behavior management.

Describes a 5-session training program for 6 directors (mean age 44.8 yrs) of school psychological services intended to prepare the Ss for organizational behavior management projects to be implemented in their school districts. After the initial training, Ss met monthly to discuss the projects and receive positive social reinforcement. During training sessions, Ss learned to pinpoint and record problems of organizational behavior and performance, design and implement organization intervention programs, link desired program behaviors with particular consequences, and evaluate intervention effectiveness. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prevention of work-related psychological disorders: A national strategy proposed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

NIOSH recognizes psychological disorders as a leading occupational health problem. This document, developed by a NIOSH working group led by the present authors, represents a first attempt to fashion a comprehensive national strategy to protect and promote the psychological health of workers. Roles are identified for industry, labor, government, and academia. Key initiatives include (a) steps to improve working conditions and employee mental health services and (b) increased research and surveillance to advance understanding of the problem. Because work-related psychological disorders appear to be a rapidly developing problem lacking complete definition in terms of scope and etiology, this strategy is not to be considered a final statement of NIOSH policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)