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)     

Standardization of the Functional Assessment and Intervention Program (FAIP) with Children Who Have Externalizing Behaviors.

The purpose of this study was to develop standardization data for the Functional Assessment Intervention Program (FAIP; University of Utah, Utah State University, & Utah State Office of Education, 1999), a computerized, functional behavioral assessment expert system. Reliability, validity, and utility analyses were conducted with students serving in either regular or special education classrooms who were rated by their teachers as having externalizing problematic behaviors. Results suggest that the FAIP demonstrated evidence of good interrater agreement and test-retest reliability for both behavior function and overall agreement. The FAIP also shows evidence of concurrent validity when identified behavior functions are compared to behavior functions identified on the Motivational Assessment Scale (MAS; Durand & Crimmins, 1992) and the Functional Assessment Interview (FAI; O'Neill et al., 1997). Most users preferred the FAIP to the two other functional assessments (MAS and FAI), ranking it higher overall and on an item-by-item basis. Implications for school psychologists using the FAIP with students who exhibit externalizing behavior disorders are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The implications of different developmental patterns of disruptive behavior problems for school adjustment. Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group

Based upon developmental models of disruptive behavior problems, this study examined the hypothesis that the nature of a child's externalizing problems at home may be important in predicting the probability of and nature of school adjustment problems at school entry. Parent ratings were collected for a sample of 631 behaviorally disruptive children using the Child Behavior Checklist. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed differentiated ratings of oppositional, aggressive, and hyperactive/inattentive behaviors at home. Teacher and peer nominations assessed school adjustment at the end of first grade. As expected from a developmental perspective, aggressive behaviors indicated more severe dysfunction and were more likely to generalize to the school setting than were oppositional behaviors. Hyperactive/inattentive behaviors at home led to more classroom disruption than did aggressive or oppositional behaviors. Co-occurring patterns of oppositional/aggressive and hyperactive/inattentive behaviors were more common than were single-problem patterns, and were associated with broad dysfunction in the social and classroom contexts. The results were interpreted within a developmental framework, in which oppositional, aggressive, and hyperactive/inattentive behaviors may reflect distinct (as well as shared) developmental processes that have implications for the home-to-school generalization of behavior problems and subsequent school adjustment.     

Acceptability of behavioral treatments: Review of variables that influence treatment selection.

Researchers interested in teachers' choices of classroom interventions have begun to amass evidence about several variables relevant to the treatment selection stage of consultative interactions between psychologists and teachers. Variables of primary importance include psychologists' jargon and rationales for treatment, teachers' philosophy about behavior changes, teachers' personal resources, and of course the severity of the target child's problem. Thus the central purpose of this article was to review 20 recent empirical investigations concerning teachers' acceptability of behavioral treatments of misbehaving school children. This review focused on teachers' reactions to treatments, but because children's and psychologists' reactions to treatments have the potential to influence teachers' reactions, they also were reviewed. In addition to a detailed presentation of conceptual issues and research methods concerning treatment acceptability, the review is concluded with a pragmatic discussion of the major findings for the practice of behavioral consultation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Neighborhood disadvantage as a moderator of the association between harsh parenting and toddler-aged children's internalizing and externalizing problems.

Neighborhood dangerousness and belongingness were expected to moderate associations between harsh parenting and toddler-age children's problem behaviors. Fifty-five predominantly African American mothers participated with their 2-year old children. Neighborhood danger, neighborhood belongingness, and children's problem behaviors were measured with mothers' reports. Harsh parenting was measured with observer ratings. Analyses considered variance common to externalizing and internalizing problems, using a total problems score, and unique variance, by controlling for internalizing behavior when predicting externalizing behavior, and vice versa. Regarding the common variance, only the main effects of neighborhood danger and harsh parenting were significantly associated with total problem behavior. In contrast, after controlling for externalizing problems, the positive association between harsh parenting and unique variance in internalizing problems became stronger as neighborhood danger increased. No statistically significant associations emerged for the models predicting the unique variance in externalizing problems or models considering neighborhood belongingness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Patterns of marital conflict predict children's internalizing and externalizing behaviors.

Reports the results of a longitudinal study on how marital interaction affects children. Observational assessment of marital interaction during conflict resolution obtained when children were 5 yrs old predicted teachers' ratings of internalizing and externalizing behaviors when the children were 8 yrs old. Two distinct and uncorrelated marital interaction patterns were related to specific forms of child outcomes. The Mutually Hostile pattern, which correlated with later marital dissolution, also predicted externalizing behavior patterns in children 3 yrs later. The Husband Angry and Withdrawn pattern predicted child internalizing behaviors. Marital satisfaction and child temperament did not relate to child outcomes, nor did they interact with marital patterns to produce deficits in child adjustment. Findings suggest that the specific behaviors couples use when resolving marital disputes may contribute differentially to the presence of externalizing and internalizing behavior patterns in children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teacher judgments concerning the acceptability of school-based interventions.

Investigated the influence of behavior problem severity, interventionist, and modality of case presentation on teacher's judgments of school-based interventions. 54 regular and special education teachers attending a university summer course used an intervention scale and the Semantic Differential to rate all possible combinations of 2 interventions (principal or teacher implemented) applied to 2 behavior problems (daydreaming and destruction of others' property). Ss read about or viewed a videotape of a 5th-grade boy engaging in 1 of the 2 problem behaviors. An ANOVA of Ss' ratings of intervention acceptability showed that behavior problem severity and interventionist significantly affected Ss' judgments of intervention acceptability. Findings show that interventions that could be implemented by the teacher were more acceptable. In addition, Ss rated interventions as more acceptable when applied to behavior problems of greater severity. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Maternal stress and emotional status during the perinatal period and childhood adjustment.

An emerging literature suggests that maternal distress during the prenatal and perinatal period may adversely affect offspring development. The association between maternal stress and emotional status in the perinatal period (defined as 1 month after birth) and adjustment of first-grade children was examined in 948 mother-child dyads from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care using hierarchical multiple regression. Maternal demographic characteristics, including maternal education and income, accounted for 4% of the variance in Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) externalizing scores when children were in first grade. Maternal stress and emotional status at 1 month accounted for an additional 4% of the variance in CBCL externalizing t scores; statistically significant contributions were made by maternal depression and perceived social support. Maternal depression and parenting stress at 1 month made statistically significant contributions to CBCL internalizing scores at first grade. These findings contribute to a growing body of literature indicating that perinatal maternal adjustment is associated with children's emotional and behavioral functioning years later. Implications for school psychologists' involvement in prevention, assessment, and intervention practices are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Behavioral conceptions and applications of acceptability: Issues related to service delivery and research methodology": Errata.

Reports an error in "Behavioral conceptions and applications of acceptability: Issues related to service delivery and research methodology" by Tanya L. Eckert and John M. Hintze (School Psychology Quarterly, 2000[Sum], Vol 15[2], 123-148). In Table 1, the following errors appeared for the Colton and Sheridan (1998) entry: the information should be "3" (case scenarios), "naturalistic" (experimental design), "multiple baseline" (experimental methods), and "postassessment" (assessment interval). (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 2000-00107-002.) Reviews conceptual, methodological, and paradigmatic issues related to the acceptability of school-based practices from a behavioral orientation. First, the authors provide an overview of the acceptability construct from a behavioral perspective including (a) the historical development of the construct of acceptability, (b) the behavioral conceptualization and definition of the construct of acceptability, and (c) the prevailing conceptual models of acceptability. Second, the authors illustrate the methodology typically used when examining consumers' acceptability of school-based practices from a behavioral perspective using a cross-source, cross-method approach. A review of empirical studies examining the acceptability of consultation, assessment, and intervention practices using a variety of school-based consumers (e.g., school psychologists, parents, teachers, children) is conducted. The importance of examining the acceptability of school-based practices from this perspective is discussed. Third, the authors discuss important methodological issues that need to be considered in conducting acceptability research. Finally, the advantages and limitations of examining acceptability within a behavioral context are reviewed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

School psychologists' personalities: Award winners contrasted with a random sample.

A random sample of 50 California school psychologists and 64 award-winning school psychologists completed the California Personality Inventory. Award winners were little different from the random sample except on folk scores related to leadership. School psychologists' scores indicated above average adjustment and mental health. A large number of both award-winning and randomly sampled school psychologists were norm-favoring and extraverted. Results were discussed in relation to current issues in the field. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Transporting an evidence-based classroom management program for preschoolers with disruptive behavior problems to a school: An analysis of implementation, outcomes, and contextual variables.

The transportability of an evidence-based teacher professional development program, the Incredible Years Classroom Management Program, was evaluated. This study compared the impact of two training methods: self-administered videotape modeling (VM) and self-administered videotape modeling plus consultation (VMC) on teachers' use of classroom management strategies, reductions in disruptive behaviors, acceptability, and contextual barriers of sustaining EBIs in practice settings. Four pairs of teachers (N = 8) were randomly assigned to VM or VMC conditions in a multiple probe design. Students (1-2 per classroom; N = 13) displaying high levels of externalizing problems also participated. Statistically significant between-groups differences in teacher confidence ratings, use of positive instructional practices, and acceptability favored the VMC condition. Positive trends favoring VMC students, including clinically significant increases in social competence, were also found. Although students in both groups exhibited reductions in disruptive behaviors, significant between-groups differences related to disruptive behavior were not observed. Findings related to contextual variables (e.g., time, cost, institutional support, adaptability of the program) have implications for future adoption of this program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does life satisfaction moderate the effects of stressful life events on psychopathological behavior during adolescence?

Psychologists within a positive psychology framework have proposed the existence of a set of psychological strengths that buffer against the development of psychopathology. To date, most research efforts in positive psychology have focused on adults. This longitudinal study tested the prediction that adolescents' judgments of life satisfaction moderate the influence of stressful life events on the subsequent development of psychopathological behavior. Using a sample of 816 middle and high school students, the study demonstrated support for the moderational model for externalizing behavior outcomes, but not internalizing behavior problems. Specifically, adolescents with positive life satisfaction (vs. those who were dissatisfied with their lives) were less likely to develop later externalizing behaviors in the face of stressful life events. The study also revealed that adolescent life satisfaction reports show moderate stability across a one-year time frame and independently predict subsequent externalizing behavior even while controlling for prior levels of externalizing behavior... (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Emotionality, emotion regulation, and adaptation among 5- to 8-year-old children.

This study investigated relations between emotionality, emotion regulation, and children's behavioral adaptation in a longitudinal design. Mothers rated emotionality and emotion regulation related to anger, fear, and positive emotions-exuberance for 151 children at age 5 and later at age 6 years 6 months. Emotionality and emotion regulation measures were modestly related. Preschool ratings at age 6 (n=125), maternal ratings at age 6 years 6 months (n=133), and elementary school ratings at age 8 (n=135) of problems and competence were also collected. High anger emotionality and low regulation of positive emotions and exuberance predicted externalizing problem behavior and prosocial behavior. High fear emotionality and low fear regulation predicted internalizing problem behavior. There were few interactive effects of emotionality and regulation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral conceptions and applications of acceptability: Issues related to service delivery and research methodology.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 16(1) of School Psychology Quarterly (see record 2007-17958-001). In Table 1, the following errors appeared for the Colton and Sheridan (1998) entry: the information should be "3" (case scenarios), "naturalistic" (experimental design), "multiple baseline" (experimental methods), and "postassessment" (assessment interval).] Reviews conceptual, methodological, and paradigmatic issues related to the acceptability of school-based practices from a behavioral orientation. First, the authors provide an overview of the acceptability construct from a behavioral perspective including (a) the historical development of the construct of acceptability, (b) the behavioral conceptualization and definition of the construct of acceptability, and (c) the prevailing conceptual models of acceptability. Second, the authors illustrate the methodology typically used when examining consumers' acceptability of school-based practices from a behavioral perspective using a cross-source, cross-method approach. A review of empirical studies examining the acceptability of consultation, assessment, and intervention practices using a variety of school-based consumers (e.g., school psychologists, parents, teachers, children) is conducted. The importance of examining the acceptability of school-based practices from this perspective is discussed. Third, the authors discuss important methodological issues that need to be considered in conducting acceptability research. Finally, the advantages and limitations of examining acceptability within a behavioral context are reviewed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparison of predictor and criterion judgments of managerial performance using the multitrait-multimethod approach.

Used the multitrait-multimethod matrix technique to examine the predictive validity of ratings of management potential derived from an industrial assessment center program. Ss were 71 professional, technical, and lower level managerial personnel. Psychologists' and managers' ratings on 13 assessment dimensions were correlated with supervisors' ratings of current job performance on the same dimensions. Ratings obtained of on-the-job performance were lower in quality than the predictor ratings. The median reliability of the criterion ratings was .52 compared to median reliabilities of .85 and .89 for the psychologists' and managers' ratings, respectively. Supervisors failed to differentiate the various dimensions. Results are compared with findings of other studies that used this technique to determine the sources of unreliability in the criterion. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitions and stress: Direct and moderating effects on depressive versus externalizing symptoms during the junior high school transition.

This study examined direct and stress-moderating effects of attributional style and global self-worth on depressive and externalizing symptoms in adolescents. Attributional style, perceived self-worth, depressive symptoms, and externalizing behaviors were assessed in 371 students in the spring of 6th grade. After the transition to 7th grade, they again completed measures of depression and externalizing symptoms as well as measures of negative life events and school hassles. Stressors around the transition predicted both depressive and externalizing behaviors. Perceived self-worth predicted depressive symptoms, but not externalizing behaviors. Attributional style directly and in interaction with stressors predicted depressive symptoms and did not predict externalizing behavior. A 3-way interaction between stress, attributional style, and self-worth suggested that level of perceived self-worth may moderate the effects of attributional style in times of stress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)