Three methods used in applied behavioral analysis research and appropriate for conducting a functional assessment of problem behavior in persons with mental retardation are described. They are informant assessment (e.g., behavioral interviews, rating scales, and questionnaires), direct observation assessment, and experimental analysis. (Author/DB)

Insecurely attached boys were less liked by peers and teachers; were perceived as more aggressive by classmates; and were rated by teachers as less competent and as having more behavior problems than were secure boys. No such association emerged for girls. Participants were 89 children assessed before and after they entered first grade and their…

Examined stressful events in lives of 309 10 to 15 year olds and stressful events and psychological symptoms reported by their parents. Findings suggest that young adolescents' stressful life experiences as well as their parents' stressful events and psychological symptoms are factors associated with increases in adolescent emotional/behavioral…

A theory-based causal model of disciplinary offender status was constructed and tested on a random sample of 348 student offenders and 348 nonoffenders at a large university. The model identified types of student involvement on campus that may be predictors of disciplinary status. (TE)

The study compared the behavioral ratings of regular classroom and special education teachers of the problem behavior and adaptive functioning of 31 adolescents with serious emotional disturbances. Results are discussed in terms of the literature on teacher tolerance of problem behavior and the effects of classroom setting upon teacher judgments.…

Reports the opinions of 101 rural Arizona teachers on (1) the effectiveness of various classroom strategies used with hyperactive students; (2) the helpfulness of advice given by other professionals and parents about handling such students; and (3) the adequacy of preservice training in needed skills. Contains 11 references. (SV)

Academic, intellectual, and behavioral correlates of sociometric status among elementary-age children with learning disabilities (LD) were investigated. Peer rejection was unrelated to IQ or achievement scores but was related to LD children's social status, acting out, and withdrawn behaviors. Teachers rated rejected LD children as more…

Psychological predictors of self-concept, behavior problems, and social competence of 55 siblings of developmentally disabled children were compared with those in 55 siblings of nondisabled children. Distinct psychological predictors for children with developmentally disabled siblings included parental stress and resources, perceived family social…

Thais and Americans evaluated one over- and one under-controlled child. Compared to Americans, Thais rated problems of both types as less serious, less worrisome, less likely to reflect personality traits, and more likely to improve over time. Differences were more pronounced for parents and teachers than for psychologists, suggesting that…

In a response to the previous article questioning the effectiveness of Assertive Discipline, it is maintained that the decision to implement a program should be based on many factors in addition to research, and that from a practitioner's standpoint, Assertive Discipline works. (Author/TE)

Evaluated effectiveness of a one-day in-service workshop on behavioral consultation using 16 school professionals (including 13 psychologists) who submitted audiotapes of prereferral interviews with teachers before and after workshop. Concluded that brief workshops can be effective in developing Problem Identification Interviewing skills and that…

This study compared the cooperation, aggression, and wandering behavior of 12 first-grade children with severe to profound hearing losses with that of 12 hearing children. No significant differences were found in amounts cooperation, aggression, or wandering behavior displayed by the two groups. However, children with hearing loss changed…

Examined social problem solving and emotion expression in children with low, moderate, and severe behavior problems. Eighty-nine four- and five-year-olds were confronted with dilemmas of interpersonal conflict and distress. Girls expressed more themes of social construction, cohesion, and accommodation but also more anger than boys, whereas boys…

A review of novels and teacher textbooks from the early 1900s shows an image of teachers far more diverse than the nostalgic one held by many Americans today. Teachers were often young and poorly prepared in academics and pedagogy, and they struggled with disobedient students for control of the school. (KS)

A functional analysis of distinct topographies of aberrant behavior displayed by 4 individuals (ages 6-28) with moderate to profound mental retardation indicated that hypotheses of separate functions for distinct behaviors can be generated using both extended and brief functional analyses when results are graphed in the aggregate and separated by…