In an attempt to address risk factors associated with extensive nonfamilial child care, we implemented the preschool life skills (PLS) program (Hanley, Heal, Tiger, & Ingvarsson, 2007) in two community-based Head Start classrooms. A multiple baseline design across classrooms, repeated across skills, showed that the program resulted in a 5-fold…

Self-sufficiency is central to child and family well-being. This report focuses on predictors of adaptive daily living skills (DLS) development in young children with ASD and whether DLS gains predict decreases in parenting stress. Participants were 162 toddlers with ASD and their parents, assessed at 3 annual timepoints. Hierarchical Linear…

The current study sought to understand the relation between diagnostic status (autism spectrum disorders [ASD] versus typically developing) and internalizing problems in children with and without co-occurring attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. Participants were 88 children, ages 3:0-6:11, their parents and teachers. Findings…

Drawing on the self-system model, this study conceptualized school engagement as a multidimensional construct, including behavioral, emotional, and cognitive engagement, and examined whether changes in the three types of school engagement related to changes in problem behaviors from 7th through 11th grades (approximately ages 12-17). In addition,…

The Signs of Safety approach to child protection has been gaining prominence around the world and this approach has developed through learning from good practice. Generally, examples of good practice are derived from adults who pose a risk to children, while this paper outlines an example of good practice that engages an adolescent in building a…

This study is the first to test whether receipt of a federal child care subsidy is associated with children of immigrants' school readiness skills. Using nationally representative data (n ˜ 2,900), this study estimates the associations between subsidy receipt at age 4 and kindergarten cognitive and social outcomes, for children of immigrant…

Prenatal multivitamin/folic acid supplement use may reduce the risk of autism spectrum disorders. We investigated whether 2nd trimester prenatal vitamin use and maternal whole blood folate (WBF) concentrations were associated with Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) scores at 4-5 years of age in a prospective cohort of 209 mother-child pairs. After…

Philosophy and schools, children and dynamite, elephants and postage stamps: each has a place, but not necessarily in any natural combination with the other. Whether schools and philosophy belong together depends largely on what we mean by both. To the extent that schools are instruments of government regulation and a mechanism for production of…

Background: The aim of this research was to explore the impact of a particular management style called practice leadership upon the experience of staff working in services for people with intellectual disability and challenging behaviour. Such staff have been shown to experience high stress and lack of job satisfaction. Support by the immediate…

This study addressed the effects of Project APPLE, an intervention created by the researcher and supported by the Guide to Project APPLE, a handbook which provided research-based teaching strategies, modificaitons to the learning environment, and transitional supports for students with ASD, and the teachers with whom their care and education is…

This qualitative study sought to better understand the lived experiences of students, teachers, and administrators with regards to the In-School Suspension program. This study was grounded in a theoretical framework which included basic concepts of behaviorism and social exchange theory. With these theories this research study sought to explain…

Research suggests that child maltreatment predicts juvenile violence, but it is uncertain whether the effects of victimization persist into adulthood or differ across gender. Furthermore, we know little about the mechanisms underlying the victim-perpetrator cycle for males and females. Consequently, this study analyzed associations between child…

Self-injurious behavior (SIB) is a devastating condition associated with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Efforts to understand its development are focused on early childhood when the behavior first emerges. Limited prevalence data on SIB during early childhood are currently available. The purpose of this study was to determine…

Severe behavior problems among people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are a major barrier to integration in the community. Recent research suggests that these behaviors often begin very early in life and might be prevented by early identification and intervention (Rojahn, Schroeder, & Hoch, 2008). The current article…

Four middle school students with autism spectrum disorders participated in a brief functional analysis and a video Social Stories[TM] intervention to remediate attention-seeking and task-avoidance behaviors. Results indicated that matching video Social Stories[TM] to specific functions of behaviors increased task-engagement behaviors in the…