Objective and subjective factors in the disproportionate referral of children for academic problems.

R. S. Drabman, K. J. Tarnowski, and P. A. Kelly (see record 1988-15423-001) and K. J. Tarnowski, D. E Anderson, R. S. Drabman, and P. A. Kelly (see record 1990-21205-001) examined children's month of birth in relation to referral for psychological services and found that younger children in the classroom were disproportionately referred for services. No differences were found between younger and older students on standardized measures of intelligence or academic achievement. Results of a replication and extension of these studies indicated (a) that younger children in the classroom were referred at a disproportionately higher rate, (b) that the referral pattern could not be explained by differences in children's competencies, (c) that Caucasian students were referred at disproportionately higher rates than minority students, and (d) a trend in which the proportionate referral rate of students increased as height or weight increased. Results are discussed within the context of teacher expectancies. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Are younger classroom children disproportionately referred for childhood academic and behavior problems?

To examine the hypothesis that younger children in a classroom are disproportionately referred for school academic and behavior problems, we investigated subjects' months of birth in relation to referrals across gender and grade from kindergarten through the fourth grade. Results from a sample of 172 pediatric psychology referrals indicated that younger children in the class and boys were more likely to be referred. Results were replicated in a cross-validation analysis of 210 child psychology referrals. This pattern remained constant across all grades examined. Findings are discussed in terms of developmental differences, developmental psychopathology, and possible teacher referral bias. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Transitional first-grade referrals: An analysis of school-related factors and children's characteristics.

In this study, the relationship among transitional first-grade referrals, school characteristics, and children's personal and school readiness characteristics was examined. Teachers who reported a higher emphasis on didactic instruction tended to refer more children to the transition room. In addition, there were lower levels of involvement for parents of transition-referred children. Moreover, referred children were younger, evaluated their own school abilities less favorably, scored lower on the Gesell Developmental Assessment, and were described by their teachers as less competent academically and less well adjusted socially. The referral of children to a readiness-transitional program is a complex process. Embedded in a sociocultural context, this process is shaped by many forces, including the school system's philosophies and structures; the teachers' views, beliefs, and activities; the family–school connection; and children's skills and characteristics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpreting nullity: The Fort Bragg experiment—A comparative success or failure?

The Fort Bragg Demonstration Project (L. Bickman, see record 83-31861; L. Bickman et al, 1995) evaluated a model of children's mental health services known as the continuum of care. The study found no support for the continuum of care theory, as it failed to find better mental health outcomes in the demonstration site vs the comparison sites. If the only finding from Fort Bragg was the absence of significant clinical improvement to children, this would be consistent with the studies that have thus far been conducted on service effectiveness in real-world settings (e.g., J. R. Weisz et al, 1995). However, the children in Fort Bragg did improve as did the children in the comparison sites. The failure in Fort Bragg was the failure to find differentially better outcomes for those who received services through its model vs the comparison model. Two possible conclusions can be drawn: 1) a continuum of care does not improve clinical outcomes beyond a standard, simplified model or 2) interventions were effective in both sites because both offered a continuum of services that was effective. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Risk of juvenile justice systems referral among children in a public mental health system

This study established the risk of police referral among a cohort of children who were recipients of public mental health services. Investigators used secondary data to calculate the incidence of criminal referral among 645 children, ages 10 to 17, who entered community-based public mental health programs in King County, Washington. Children receiving public mental health services were nearly three times more likely to be referred to the juvenile justice system compared to children of similar age and gender in the general population. Relative risks were particularly high for younger children (10-13 years) and for children of Hispanic, Native American, and Caucasian origin. Understanding the characteristics and experiences of children who use multiple-service systems has important implications for services delivery. In addressing the needs of youth who have both mental illness and criminal involvement, age- and culturally specific interventions and advocacy efforts are warranted.     

Prevalence of childhood disorder, perceived need for help, family dysfunction and resource allocation for child welfare and children's mental health services in Ontario.

Compared distribution of mental health morbidity assessed during a 1983 study of Ontario children (aged 4–16 yrs) conducted by M. H. Boyle et al (see record 1988-03200-001) with information in government documents on patterns of utilization and expenditure on child welfare and children's mental health services in Ontario during the same period. Survey measures included prevalence of psychiatric disorder determined by self-report checklists and perception of need for professional help for emotional and behavioral problems. Results indicate that large geographic variations in expenditures per capita and utilization of services per 1,000 cannot be justified on the basis of independently assessed child mental health. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Accelerating language development through picture book reading: Replication and extension to a videotape training format.

G. J. Whitehurst et al (see record 1989-02401-001) taught mothers specific interactive techniques to use when reading picture books with their preschool-age children. This intervention program, called dialogic reading, produced substantial effects on preschool children's language development. However, the costs of one-on-one training limit the widespread use of dialogic reading techniques. In this study the authors aimed to replicate and extend the results of the original study of dialogic reading by developing and evaluating an inexpensive videotape training package for teaching dialogic reading techniques. Mothers were randomly assigned to receive no training, traditional direct training, or videotape training. Results supported the conclusions of Whitehurst et al: Dialogic reading had powerful effects on children's language skills and indicated that videotape training provided a cost-effective, standardized means of implementing the program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developmental study of praise and blame as attributional cues.

Meyer et al. (1979) documented that praise following success and the absence of blame following failure are used by adults to infer low ability. In the present study, the Meyer et al. methodology was modified for examining developmental differences in the use of praise and blame as attributional cues. Children ages 4 to 12 years were presented with videotaped scenarios depicting two students who either succeeded or failed at an achievement task. The feedback to these students was either praise versus neutral feedback following success or blame versus neutral feedback following failure. Participants then judged the effort and ability of each target child. All children inferred that the praised student was higher in effort and that the blamed student was lower in effort than were their neutral-feedback counterparts. A developmental pattern in ability judgments, however, indicated that only the oldest children inferred lower ability given praise and the absence of blame, as in the Meyer et al. study. The data for the youngest children were opposite to this pattern, with higher ability inferred given praise and lower ability reported given blame. These findings were interpreted as evidence of children's emerging understanding of a compensatory relation between effort and ability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In support of Saxe, Cross, and Silverman.

Extends the L. Saxe et al (see record 1989-09717-001) discussion of shortcomings in delivery of mental health services to children by describing a North Carolina program to provide habilitative treatment and educational services for all state citizens under 18 yrs old who suffer or are at risk of serious emotional, mental, or neurological handicaps. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Enhancing preparation among entry-level clinical health psychologists: Recommendations for “best practices” from the first meeting of the Council of Clinical Health Psychology Training Programs (CCHPTP).

Recent discussions in clinical health psychology regarding foundational (knowledge-based) and functional (applied) competencies have been guided by the cube model of core competencies (Rodolfa et al., 2005). Proposed competencies for doctoral-level clinical health psychologists were recently published (France et al., 2008). Based on the 2008 Council of Clinical Health Psychology Training Programs conference, we discuss how the proposed competencies might be incorporated into doctoral-level training. Because we view these competencies and training practices to be aspirational, we also address the challenges inherent in making curricular decisions pertaining to which competencies are emphasized in individual programs and within the context of American Psychological Association accreditation requirements. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The social competence of Latino kindergartners and growth in mathematical understanding.

We know that social competence contributes to young children's adaptation to, and cognitive learning within, classroom settings. Yet initial evidence is mixed on the social competencies that Latino children bring to kindergarten and the extent to which these skills advance cognitive growth. Building from ecocultural and developmental-risk theory, this paper shows children's social competence to be adaptive to the normative expectations and cognitive requirements of culturally bounded settings in both the home and classroom. Latino socialization in the home may yield social competencies that teachers value rather than reflect “risk factors” that constrain children's school readiness. We draw on the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, kindergarten cohort (N = 19,590) to detail 5 social competencies at entry to school—self-control, interpersonal skills, approaches to learning, internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors—and to examine variability among Latino subgroups. We then test the extent to which baseline variation in social competence accounts for children's cognitive growth during the kindergarten year. We find that Latino children from poor, but not middle-class, families display weaker social competencies vis-à-vis White children (all relationships p ≤ .05). Social competence levels contribute to Latino children's cognitive growth, which is shaped most strongly by positive approaches to learning. The disparities in competencies observed for Latino children from poor families, relative to White children, are significant yet much smaller than gaps in baseline levels of mathematical understanding. We discuss how the consonance or mismatch between competencies acquired at home and those valued by teachers must consider cultural differences, social-class position, and variation among diverse Latino subgroups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changes in the referral pattern of child patients from the GDS to the CDS following the introduction of capitation in October 1990. General Dental Services. Community Dental Services

OBJECTIVE: To observe the changes in the criteria for, rate of, and pattern of, referral of child patients from the General Dental Services (GDS) to the Community Dental Services (CDS) which may have occurred following the introduction of capitation as the method of remuneration for general dental practitioners (GDPs) for the treatment of child patients in The new contract 1990. DESIGN: GDP referral criteria and attitude to capitation were assessed in two districts (North Downs and Weybourne Trusts) using a questionnaire distributed to 179 GDPs. Reasons for referral, and treatment received within the CDS, were collated from the dental records of referred children, before and after the introduction of capitation. RESULTS: The response rate from the GDPs was 87%, of whom 82% had referred child patients to the CDS. The results showed that 65% of GDPs indicated a preference for treatment of children under a fee per item system, whereas only 17% favoured capitation. Although 60% believed that their referral of patients to the CDS had not changed following capitation, an analysis of the referred children's dental records revealed that there had actually been a 57% increase in the number of referrals from GDPs to CDS following the introduction of capitation. The GDPs considered the most important referral criteria were for non cooperation or general anaesthesia. More cooperative children had been referred and more routine restorative procedures, less inhalation sedation and deciduous extractions were carried out following the introduction of capitation. CONCLUSIONS: This study has shown that following the introduction of capitation there had been an increase in the number of referrals from the GDS to the CDS.     

Experts' and novices' abilities to detect children's high-stakes lies of omission.

We investigated adults' abilities to detect lies told by 3- to 6-year-old children. Expert forensic interviewers and novices watched videotapes of children who either lied or told the truth about their parent's transgression, rendered a dichotomous judgment of whether the child lied, rated their confidence in that judgment, and rated the children on various characteristics. Adults detected lies with greater than chance—but not impressive—accuracy, regardless of expertise level. Older children's lies were more detectable by experts than were younger children's. Adults were more confident in their judgments about older than younger children. Confidence in lie/truth judgments was not significantly correlated with actual lie detection accuracy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Advances in children's mental health.

Comments on articles addressing children's mental health (MH) in the October 1988 issue of American Psychologist, including articles by D. Dougherty, D. K. Inouye, and L. Saxe et al (see PA, Vol 76:9682, 9693, and 9717). The articles overlooked recent advances toward improving services for troubled children: A 4-pronged effort has been embarked on to advance child MH. Progress is apparent in defining the system of care needed by children with MH problems and in support for state- and community-wide changes in interagency system development. The 3rd and 4th areas are the development of a national movement of parents of emotionally disturbed youth and advances in the area of minority group concerns. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Physical contact in helping interactions with young children.

Studied frequency of occurrence of 4 types of physical contact (touching, holding hands, sitting on lap, and hugging) during school-based helping interactions between 49 nonprofessional child aides and a total of 559 children from kindergarten through 6th grade and from special education classes. The Physical Contact Survey was used to assess the frequency of occurrence of the 4 types of physical contact; the Classroom Adjustment Rating Scale, Aide Status Evaluation Form, and Professional Termination Report were used to assess children's referral and outcome status. Findings indicate that contacts varied markedly from a high of 81% for touching to a low of 4% for sitting on lap. Four parametric variables accurately predicted the occurrence of contact behaviors: (a) Girls had more contact than boys; (b) younger children had more contact than older; (c) aides from different buildings differed in the amount of contact they had with children; and (d) aides previously trained in Ginnottian limit-setting approaches had fewer physical contacts with children than those without such training. Frequency of contact behaviors did not relate either to a child's adjustment status at referral or to intervention outcomes. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parent-child relationships in stepparent families.

Compared college students' perceptions of parent–child relationships in stepfamilies with those in continuously intact families. 47 students from stepfamilies and 130 from intact families completed a parent–child relationship survey developed by M. A. Fine et al (see record 1984-01194-001). Results suggest that adult stepchildren perceived relationships with their noncustodial biological mothers and stepmothers less positively than adult children from intact families perceived relationships with their biological mothers. No significant differences were found between adult children's perceptions of father–child and stepfather–child relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Imitation and expansions: Some developmental aspects of mother-child communications.

Videotaped 2 groups each of 9 children (age ranges = 18-26 mo and 48-61 mo, respectively) in a free-play setting with their mothers. Interactions were analyzed for relationships between mothers' and children's speech with regard to complexity and usage of selected speech types. Mothers' expansions of child utterances were positively related to the younger, but not the older, children's imitations of mothers' speech. Mothers' sentence complexity was positively related to younger, but not older, children's frequency of responding to questions. Child speech that is responsive to mothers' speech seems to provide a gauge by which mothers tailor their language complexity, allowing the child to exert an influence on his language environment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Diagnostic Inventory for Screening Children: Psychometric, factor, and validity analyses.

Reviews normative data from 571 Ss for the Diagnostic Inventory for Screening Children (DISC) developed by J. A. Amdur et al (1988). Concurrent and construct validity of the DISC are also reported, based on data from 40 children who were referred to community agencies for assessment of developmental delays and workers from the agencies. Reliability data indicate substantial agreement and stability within the DISC. Validity data shows that the DISC was more likely to lead to a referral than the Denver Developmental Screening Test or the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Test—Third Edition. Factor analyses indicate that a common factor model with 1 factor was a good fit to most age groups, especially those under age 3 yrs. Limitations of the DISC are discussed. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

School-based service utilization among urban children with early onset educational and mental health problems: The squeaky wheel phenomenon.

Although elementary schools provide an opportunity for early identification and treatment of academic and psychological problems, relatively little is known about the types of symptoms being addressed in schools. Latent profile analysis on data from 678 urban first graders yielded 3 classes of children: nonsymptomatic (NS), internalizers and average performers (IAP), and externalizers and low performers (ELP), with different combinations of symptoms. Survival analyses conducted on the children's use of services (in Grades 1-9) indicated that students in the ELP class received mental health and special education services faster than those in the NS class, whereas IAP children were no more likely than NS children to receive services. Findings suggest that staff may be more sensitive to early educational and externalizing problems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Referral patterns in ethnic-specific and mainstream programs for ethnic minorities and Whites.

The present study examined the referral patterns of 1,095 African, 2,168 Asian, 1,385 Hispanic, and 2,273 White Americans (18 years of age and older) in a public mental health system to determine whether group differences in help-seeking and referral patterns were related to participation in ethnic-specific versus mainstream programs. Results indicated that (a) ethnic minorities in both mainstream and ethnic-specific programs were more likely than Whites to have been referred by natural help-giving and lay referral sources (e.g., family or friends, health services, and social services) and (b) ethnic minorities in ethnic-specific programs were more likely than ethnic minorities in mainstream programs to have been referred by natural help-giving and lay referral sources if they were Asian and Hispanic Americans and self-referred if they were African Americans. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)