Interrelationships between temperament characteristics and first-grade teacher-student interactions.

The relationships between temperament characteristics and first-grade teacher-student interaction were investigated. It was hypothesized that the temperament characteristics of Adaptability and Approach/Withdrawal would be potent predictors of teacher-student interactions since they had been found previously to be strong predictors of children's emotional and behavioral adjustment to school. The teachers of 105 first-grade children completed temperament questionnaires during the early part of the academic year, and their interactions with the children were observed soon thereafter. The teacher temperament ratings were factor-analyzed, and regression models were generated to predict classroom interactions. The study's hypothesis was supported, and three separate temperament dimensions were found to be predictive of classroom interactions. Suggestions are made for future extensions of the findings.

Self-perceptions and social comparisons among children with LD.

The self-perceptions of third- and fourth-grade children with learning disabilities (LD; n = 59) and nondisabled students (n = 57) were compared using the Self-Perception Profile for Learning Disabled Students. Results suggested that the children with LD perceived themselves as less competent than did the controls in the areas of intelligence, academic skills, behavior, and social acceptance. These differences were not related to the length of time subjects with LD had received special education services. Contrary to expectations, subjects' self-perceptions were not affected by whether they chose LD or general education class peers as a reference group.

Effects of labeling and a child's reaction to punishment on subsequent disciplinary practices of adults and peers.

Effects of the label "mentally retarded" and a child's reaction to punishment on the severity of punishment administered by college students and fourth graders were examined using a video tape of an acting-out child in a classroom. Forty males and 40 females in each age group viewed one of four video tapes that were identical, with the exception of a segment in which the child responded to being disciplined by either making reparation, pleading, ignoring his punishment, or being defiant. One-half of the subjects in each condition were told that the child was mentally retarded. The subject decided how many points, representing varying intervals of "free time, should be given or removed contingent on the child's behavior. Results revealed that college students were significantly more punitive than were fourth graders, the labeled child received a significantly less severe punishment than did the nonlabeled child, and, in comparison with the other reaction conditions, the child received the most severe punishment when he reacted defiantly and obtained a reward when he responded with reparation. The results were discussed in terms of the protective function of the label and the bidirectional model of socialization.

Clinical utility of Kaufman's "amazingly" short forms of the WAIS-R with educable mentally retarded adolescents.

This study investigated the comparability between three "amazingly" short forms of the WAIS-R (a dyad, triad, and tetrad) suggested by Kaufman, Ishikuma, and Kaufman-Packer (1991) and the complete battery among a sample of 114 educable mentally handicapped adolescents. Results indicate that the short forms are highly correlated with the complete battery Full Scale IQs, and all three short forms yielded scores, on average, within 2 points of the complete battery. Analyses at an individual level revealed that more than 90% of the sample fell within 3 SEM (9 points) of the FSIQ for all three short forms. Overall results are consistent with previous studies and support the use of these "amazingly" short forms.

Validation of an item-reduction short form of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Fourth Edition with college students.

This study investigated the comparability of item-reduction and subtest-reduction short forms of the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Fourth Edition (SB:IV) with the complete battery in a sample of college students. All item-reduction SASs were not significantly different from the full battery SASs. Correlations for corresponding SASs and subtests between the complete and short form were highly significant, and analyses of the short-form profile supported the interpretation of individual subtests. The subtest-reduction short-form SASs were significantly lower than both the item-reduction short form and the full battery. Thus, an item-reduction short form proved to be a more comparable estimate of the full battery composite than the subtest-reduction short form.

Recent advances in mnemonic strategy training with mentally retarded persons: implications for educational practice.

A portion of the empirical literature on training mentally retarded people to use mnemonic strategies was reviewed. Specific topics examined included strategy maintenance, strategy generalization, and metamemory, with emphasis on the implications of this research for the education of retarded students. We concluded that although significant gains have resulted from the past two decades of research, many questions of educational significance remain unanswered. With the restrictions placed by recent research in mind, we suggested that this area can be of immediate benefit to special educators.

A population-based analysis of behavior problems in children with cerebral palsy.

Used the National Health Interview Survey, Child Health Supplement for 1981 and 1988, to analyze parent-reported behavior problems of children, ages 4-17 years, with cerebral palsy (n = 47), with mental retardation (n = 50), with other chronic conditions (n = 6,038), and with no known health problem (n = 5,930), using the Behavior Problem Index (developed by Zill & Peterson). Behaviors with scores greater than the 90th percentile of the entire sample were considered problem behaviors. Parent-reported behavior problems were 5 times more likely in children with cerebral palsy (25.5%) compared with children having no known health problem (5.4%). The adjusted odds ratio for behavior problems of children with cerebral palsy without mental retardation was 4.9 and of children with mental retardation without cerebral palsy was 7.9. Specific behaviors that were most problematic for children with cerebral palsy were identified as dependency, headstrong, and hyperactive.