Vicki L. Schwean

Handbook of psychosocial characteristics of exceptional children

Foreword: What We Make of Difference and the Difference We Make J.M. Kauffmann. Part I: Conceptual, Theoretical, and Research Underpinnings. 1. Theory and Research in the Study of Childhood Exceptionalities E.J. Mash, D.J.A. Dozois. 2. Psychological Perspectives on Exceptionality S.H. McConaughy, D.R. Ritter. 3. Biological and Genetic Factors in Human Development V.F. Howard, et al. 4. Psychosocial Effects of Environmental Factors C.N. Oberg, et al. 5. Childhood Disability and the Family M. Seligman. 6. Social and Cultural Perspectives A.K.F. Li. 7. Determinants of Psychosocial Disorders in Cultural Minority Children V.L. Schwean, et al. Part II: Psychosocial Characteristics of Exceptional Children. IIA: Emotional and Behavioral Disorders. 8. Internalizing Disorders of Childhood and Adolescence M.C. Coleman, J.C. Hoyle. 9. Externalizing Conditions J.E. Lochman, R.G. Szczepanski. 10. Austim M.H. Charlop-Christy, S.E. Kelso. 11. Psychosocial Characteristics of Children with Pervasive Developmental Disorders L. Zwaigenbaum, P. Szatmari. IIB: Physical and Health Impairments. 12. Psychosocial Aspects of Neurological Impairments in Children M. Semrud-Clikeman. 13. Psychosocial Correlates of Physical and Health Disabilities S.J. Best. 14. An Alternate Path to Exceptionality: Prenatal Effects of Teratogenic Substances on Developmental Processes K. Kopera-Frye, R. Arendt. IIC: Intellectual Differences. 15. Psychosocial Correlates of Mental Retardation J.L. Nanson, B. Gordon. 16. Gifted Children: The Promise of Potential/The Problems of Potential E.D. Fiedler. IIID: Language/Learning Disabilities. 17. Psychosocial Correlates of Learning Disabilities R. Pearl, M. Bay. 18. Psychiatric Disorders in Children with Speech, Language, and Communication Disorders C.A.M. Baltaxe. IIE: Sensory Impairments. 19. Emotional Disorders in Deaf Children P. Arnold. 20. The Impact of Visual Impairments on Psychosocial Development S.M. Rogow. Part III: Intervention and Prevention: A Life Span Perspective on Exceptionality. 21. Early Identification and Intervention of Psychosocial and Behavioral Effects of Exceptionality T.K. Wheatcraft, B.A. Bracken. 22. Fostering Resilience in Exceptional Children: The Search for Islands of Competence R.B. Brooks. 23. Looking Ahead: The Adjustment of Adults with Disabilities V.L. Schwean. Index.

Personality, Self-Regulation, and Adaptation: A Cognitive-Social Framework

Publisher Summary Styles of self-regulation are an integral aspect of personality. Reconciling the trait and social–cognitive perspectives on self-regulation requires understanding the underlying cognitive architecture. The three-level architecture proposed by Wells and Matthews is applied to understanding individual differences in adaptation to the challenges posed by everyday life events, by demanding tasks, and potential hostility in other people. In each case, self-regulative processing is prone to “cognitive distortions,” such as biases in appraisal of the self and of external demands. Across the research areas surveyed, the single most important trait is neuroticism. It relates to various self-referent processes, including appraisals of threat and loss of control across various contexts, negative appraisals of the self as a social agent associated with shyness, and negative or maladaptive metacognitions. Neuroticism also may relate to attributions of hostility to others via its association with emotionally reactive aggression. More neurotic subjects also prefer to cope through emotion focus and disengagement as opposed to task focus.

Wisc-III Assessment of Children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the critical issues in reference to the role of the Wechsler intelligence scale for children-third edition in the description and diagnosis of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), thereby visiting the potential contributions of WISC-III subtests in substantiating theoretical models of ADHD. As per the empirical findings, subtle cognitive deficits with respect to inhibition and attention are more prominent and reliable diagnostic indicators in children with ADHD rather than motor excesses. It is usually expected that scores from intelligence tests such as the WISC-III become quite stable by the time a child enters school. The chapter also illustrates that the WISC-III manual reports test ranging from .87 to .94 for the IQ scores over a “12–63 period” for a sample of 353 children. To ensure the optimal performance of these children, considerable clinical sensitivity and flexibility is required while adhering to the standardized nature of the test. The chapter states that when the tests are conducted in the right nature they prove as important resources in multiscore, multimodal evaluation of ADHD.

WISC-III and SB:FE Performance of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

This study examined the relationship between the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Fourth Edition in a sample of children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Scales within and between the tests generally show moderate to high correlations although it is suggested that scores for individuals may vary between the tests.

Children First: It's Time to Change! Mental Health Promotion, Prevention, and Treatment Informed by Public Health, and Resiliency Approaches.

Although the importance of healthy mental development in children and youth is not disputed, the mental health needs of far too many Canadian children are being ignored. Within the context of recent federal and provincial calls for systemic reform of the mental health care systems for children and youth, we underscore the necessity for ongoing innovation, development, education, and evaluation. This article describes our aims to establish demonstration and research sites focused on promising frameworks that draw from systems of care, public health, and resiliency approaches.

A C.L.E.A.R. Approach to Report Writing: A Framework for Improving the Efficacy of Psychoeducational Reports

Psychoeducational reports are the primary means for a school psychologist to communicate the results of an assessment. Although reports should be written in the most efficient and reader-friendly manner, this is not always the case. Additionally, problems in report writing have remained relatively consistent for several decades, despite recommendations on how reports should be improved. The focus of the current article is to provide an integrated and easily implemented framework for improving psychoeducational reports based on the evidence and broad recommendations currently available in the literature. Specifically, the C.L.E.A.R. Approach to report writing for practitioners is presented, with practical strategies and examples provided to illustrate the use of the model in a school-based setting. Le rapport psycho-éducatif est la méthode primaire pour un psychologue d’école afin de communiquer ses résultats obtenus lors d’une évaluation. Ce rapport doit être écrit de façon simple et précis, malheureusement, ce n’est pas toujours ce qui est observé. En effet, certaines difficultés face aux rapports psycho-éducatifs sont demeurées constantes au cours des années, malgré les nombreuses recommandations suggérées. Le but de la recherche présentée ici, consiste à fournir un modèle d’encadrement facile à implanter et à intégrer. Ceci permettra d’améliorer les rapports puisqu’ils sont basés sur les preuves et les vastes recommandations qui sont actuellement disponibles dans la littérature. Spécifiquement, l’accent sera mis sur l’approche “C.L.E.A.R.”. Cette approche présente des stratégies pratiques ainsi que des exemples illustrant l’utilisation de ce modèle dans un environnement scolaire.

Assessment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder with the WISC-IV

Publisher Summary This chapter describes current theories and research that informs the psychologist who plays a central role in the initial diagnosis and subsequent assessments of children with attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD). Knowing the overall cognitive ability of a child with ADHD is of relevance in planning behavioral and educational programming. Current theories described in this chapter have, for example, also implicated the significance of working memory impairments in ADHD. The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) also has considerable clinical value for monitoring cognitive changes of paramount importance in determining the efficacy of medical, psychological, and educational programs. Intelligence testing plays an integral role in the assessment process. Intelligence tests like the Wechsler scales are not sufficiently sensitive to be used exclusively in making a diagnosis of ADHD or for discrimination among the various subtypes of ADHD. Clinical and educational needs may require a reexamination of a childs ability in a short span of time to confirm the first test results or to ensure an accurate diagnosis.

Promoting Intrapersonal Qualities in Adolescents Evaluation of Rapport's Teen Leadership Breakthrough Program

Given the number of negative influences on youth and the resultant potential for adverse outcomes, it is crucial to support their positive development. Leadership training programs can promote the development of adaptive intrapersonal qualities. The Teen Leadership Breakthrough (TLB) program claims to create sustainable changes in youth using experiential activities, direct instruction, and feedback to teach leadership skills. This study evaluated the TLB programs efficacy in developing intrapersonal skills in 10th- and 11th-grade students. Participants were randomly assigned to a control or treatment group. Assessment of emotional intelligence and self-concept occurred prior to, immediately after, 6 weeks and 6 months following the intervention. Results indicated that the TLB program created sustainable changes emotional intelligence and self-concept. Although these results are encouraging, further research is needed to investigate the effectiveness of the TLB program in broader demographic groups and to examine different outcomes.

Moderator Factors in First Nation Students at Risk for Psychosocial Problems.

In this study the authors sought to examine the determinants of psychological well-being and risk in First Nation students residing in their home community. The participant sample was drawn from students who resided in a First Nation community and were served by their tribal council in a central western province. All students, Grades 1 to 12, who were registered in a First Nation or provincial school were included. The results of the study indicate that, because academic performance continues to be such a strong predictor of psychosocial well-being, it underscores the importance of the school as an ameliorative factor in the prevention and treatment of behavioral problems. Given this finding, the authors recognize the significance of intervention as a preventive measure for all age groups and the responsibility of federal and provincial funding agencies to continue to make available appropriate educational resources to First Nation communities.

Treatment effect of a school based cognitive-behavioral program for aggressive children

The Day Treatment Program was designed as a teacher operated, school-based cognitive-behavioral program. Initiated to address the needs of behaviorally disordered children, it has a strong parenting component. This study found that the program had a significant treatment effect. Aggressive popular children did not respond to the program as well as aggressive unpopular children.