Thirty studies on supported employment for people with disabilities were evaluated using a proposed Social Validity Matrix. Results suggested further research should investigate alternative strategies for assessing social validity, develop systematic procedures for collecting and using social validity data, and establish functional variables…

A three-step assessment and quantification procedure is described that determines the goodness-of-fit (congruence) between a person's behavioral capabilities and setting-specific performance requirements. Concurrent validity and correlational data are presented, as well as potential uses of the Goodness-of-Fit Index (GOFI) procedure. (Author/JW)

Two studies (with 78 experts in deaf blindness and multiple disabilities and 44 parents of children with deaf blindness) explored the content and social validity of an educational planning tool--COACH (Choosing Options and Accommodations for Children). Combined results provide initial validation that COACH is congruent with exemplary practice.…

The article demonstrates how single-subject research methodology can be used to demonstrate educational validity of programs for severely disabled learners through the incorporation of the criteria of internal validity, educational integrity, and empirical and social validity. (CB)

Single-subject research designs are not sufficient to determine educational validity which requires systematic attention to larger issues of meaningfulness in relationship to criterion environments. A more comprehensive evaluative framework ensures that services and practices for severely disabled persons will be guided by research findings as…

This study examined 40 articles published in the "American Journal on Mental Retardation" or the "Journal of the Association for Persons with Severe Handicaps" (JASH) from 1976-78 and 1986-88. Both journals published low numbers of articles with ecological validity in the late 1970s, but JASH subsequently increased…

Special education teachers (n=83) from five states were surveyed concerning difficulties in implementing various educational practices validated by researchers. Time constraints and administrative support were seen as major obstacles to implementation. The reported presence of quality indicators correlated with teacher skill and implementation…