The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the lived experience of individuals' self-management of celiac disease, and the role experiential learning played in that lived experience. The study was guided by the research question: What was the lived experience of individuals' self-management of celiac disease and what role did…

Empathy is generally described as a multidimensional construct, consisting of cognitive and affective components. Researchers demonstrate that a better ability to understand and express empathy toward others is associated with positive social outcomes such as strong communication skills and meaningful social relationships. For individuals with…

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a lifelong chronic medical condition diagnosed through screening at birth. Complications of SCD can significantly burden affected children as they learn to manage their health needs. This study sought to investigate the perceived obstacles that may hinder children with SCD from receiving the necessary support and…

Students diagnosed with sickle cell disease (SCD) are eligible for special education services and benefit from advances in medical research that have extended the life expectancy of this population; however, there is a dearth of research on medical professionals' and PK-12 educators' awareness epistemological beliefs about pediatric sickle cell…

In language learning, aided language modeling refers to the method by which communication partners provide models of the communication system used by individuals with complex communication repertoires that involving both symbols and speech. Providing aided language models creates opportunities for individuals with complex communication repertoires…

Shared reading is an engaging activity that can be used to facilitate communication between parents and their children. This is true for children with and without disabilities. The current study describes the communication that mothers used during shared reading with their daughters with Rett syndrome when reading unfamiliar books before and after…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not decreased articulation of speech played a role in the ability of an individual with Down syndrome or Fragile X syndrome to signal noncomprehension and whether the two groups differed in their levels of articulation of speech and noncomprehension signaling ability. The research was conducted…

Landau-Kleffner syndrome (LKS) is a rare childhood disorder that is often misdiagnosed as autism or childhood psychosis because of overlapping symptom presentation. Favorable prognoses in LKS depend on early diagnosis and treatment. While much is known about the clinical basis for LKS diagnosis, little is known about parents' lived experience with…

The ability to form associations between words and objects rapidly with a short amount of exposure is a marker of more proficient word learners in typically developing (TD) infants. Investigating the underlying mechanisms for how words are associated with objects is necessary for understanding early word learning in the TD population as well as in…

Developmental dyslexia is a specific impairment of reading ability in the presence of normal intelligence and adequate reading instruction. Current research has linked dyslexia to genetic underpinnings, which are identifiable. Furthermore, there are cognitive processes that are influenced by unique genetically programmed neural networks that…

Fragile X syndrome is the leading inherited cause of intellectual disability. Most boys with fragile X syndrome have impaired cognition and language deficits, with significant within-syndrome variability. Syntax may be especially delayed relative to nonverbal cognition; however, little is known about the specificity of delay, the sources of that…

This study investigated the relationship between repetitive behaviors and sensory behavior to the parenting stress of mothers of boys with fragile X syndrome and mothers of boys with autism. Participants consisted of two groups: 51 mothers with boys diagnosed with fragile X syndrome (M = 71.3, SD = 56.5) and 30 mothers with boys diagnosed with…

The purpose of this study was to describe and explore the experience of inclusion of students with Williams syndrome, a rare genetic condition of a microdeletion on chromosome 7 which has medical, behavior, and cognitive issues. The study was conducted by gaining an understanding from the parents' point of view. The study was twofold. First, the…

It has been established in the literature, that individuals with intellectual disabilities often experience difficulties in social adjustment (Matson & Fee, 1991; Mulick, Hanson, & Dura, 1991) and experience high rates of peer rejection (Merrel, Merz, Johnson, & Ring, 1992). Furthermore, studies reveal that people with intellectual disabilities…

We investigated empowerment in the Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency (Alpha-1) community, a rare, genetic disease network in the United States. The research was motivated by nine years of observations in the community. After observing what seemed to be a heightened amount of activism among Alpha-1 community members, I had hypothesized that this…