Background: Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) have problems acquiring language, affecting their communicative participation, social--emotional functioning (SEF) and quality of life (QoL). Aims: To investigate whether communicative participation mediates the relation between language and SEF and QoL. Methods & Procedures: In a…

Behavior problems among young children in early childhood education centers are found to be at a growing rate from the literature. Behavioral problems if left untreated may lead to more severe outcomes for some children. Behavior problems pose by young children in the early childhood classroom interrupt with classroom instruction. Early…

Researchers and clinicians have successfully demonstrated the use of telehealth in supporting parents to conduct functional analyses (FAs) and subsequent functional communication training (FCT). We replicated and extended previous research by utilizing telehealth to train an existing Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) Behavior Specialist to…

Background: Among children diagnosed with developmental delays, difficulties in self-regulation are prominent and have been linked to school readiness problems. Objective: The current study sought to examine the impact of the Kids In Transition to School (KITS) school readiness intervention program on self-regulation, with a specific focus on…

Early indicators of academic risk were used to predict the academic skills, socioemotional functioning, and receipt of special education services at age 10 among children from low-income families who participated in the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project. Pairwise comparison of academic skills and socioemotional functioning among…

This study investigates teacher responses in Taiwan to children's initiations in regular classrooms and the differences between children with and without developmental delays. The sample consisted of 107 teacher-child dyads, including 53 children with developmental delays and 54 typically developing peers. Teacher-child interactions were…

The current study evaluated the play behaviors of children with disabilities (e.g., developmental delays, specific language impairment) who participated in a social communication intervention targeting skills such as initiations, responses, name use, proximity, and turn-taking. Three children who were enrolled in an inclusive classroom met the…

The purpose of this article is to raise the profile of play so that it is an important domain of concern for serving children with delays and disabilities, just as are the other five domains specified in federal law. A rationale for the integration of the behavioral perspective and the constructivist perspective is presented to contribute clarity…

The benefits of early intervention for very young children with autism are now well established. Hand and hand with these interventions is the necessity of psychometrically sound diagnostic tools. Not only should these tools be instrumental in differentiating developmentally delayed and other at risk infants. These measures should also be…

Approximately 225,000 children from birth to age three are affected by developmental delays, and additionally, 49,000 are affected by a physical disability (U.S. Census Bureau, 2006). Fortunately there are policies and programs that help young children with disabilities achieve positive outcomes in school and live independent lives in the future.…

Early intervention has been reported to improve outcome in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Several studies in the field have been randomized controlled trials (RCTs). The aim of this study was to assess ASD outcome in a large naturalistic study. Two hundred and eight children, aged 20-54 months, with a clinical diagnosis of ASD…

Background: Families of young children with disabilities are faced with ongoing challenges that impact various aspects of family life. Given the increasing emphasis on promoting positive outcomes in these families, the overall aim of the current study was to examine the contribution of child, family, and support characteristics to the quality of…

A growing body of evidence indicates that for some children, early incidences of challenging behaviors are predictors of later difficulties. These incidences of challenging behaviors may predict mental health issues, social adjustment issues and/or increased challenging behaviors that will impede school success and impact transition to adult life…

Speaker immersion is a tactic that uses multiple establishing operations to increase speaker behavior for individuals with limited mand and tact repertoires. The purpose of this paper was to evaluate the effects of speaker immersion on the number of independent mands, tacts, and autoclitics emitted by young children with verbal delays. In the…

Meeting a crucial need, this book provides clear recommendations for authentic developmental assessment of children from infancy to age 6, including those with developmental delays and disabilities. It describes principles and strategies for collecting information about children's everyday activities in the home, preschool, and community, which…