Thirty male juvenile delinquents and 90 male high achievers, low achievers, and students with behavior problems were compared using an adapted version of Harter's Perceived Competence Scale for Children. The Australian students (aged 12-15) were compared on 4 different domains of perceived competence--cognitive competence, social competence,…

Studies the effectiveness of a free-time contingency on reducing the frequency of interruptions of 28 students in a residential treatment center high class room. Implications of the findings are discussed in terms of implementation, use of peers for data collection and impact on the target behaviors. (FMW)

This study examined patterns of social-emotional subgroups among 122 students with learning disabilities in Israel. Cluster analysis found four subgroups: two nonlonely (one behaviorally adjusted and one with externalizing maladjustment) and two lonely (with externalizing and internalizing maladjustment). Teacher ratings, student ratings, and case…

An orientation and mobility (O&M) instructor presents a case study of a blind 14 year old with mild cognitive deficits and emotional and behavioral problems. The case study demonstrates the importance of individualizing the O&M curriculum, including changing the usual sequence of instruction. (DB)

Teachers, student teachers, paraprofessionals, and college students (total n=1,037) in a region authorizing corporal punishment responded to scenarios describing misbehaving children, varying in seriousness of the transgression, severity of appropriate punishment, and appropriateness of the behavior in other settings. Intergroup differences were…

Suggests incorporating into practice those findings that emerge repeatedly in different foster care studies. Identifies four characteristics of children that have been linked to particular outcomes: age at time of placement, contact with biological family, length of time in care, and behavior problems. Shows how incorporation of these factors into…

Examined the relative role of parent-child relationships, family stress, and disease factors in predicting behavior problems in children with epilepsy. Found that children's self-reliance correlated with parent-reported behavior problems, whereas expression of affect related to teacher-reported problems. Overall, parent-child relationship factors…

This article describes the use of social-story intervention programs to teach appropriate social behavior to 3 children with autism (ages 7 and 11). The intervention combined social-story methodology with a behavioral social skills training strategy. Suggestions for developing, implementing, and evaluating social-story programs are provided.…

The effects on compliance of two types of differential negative reinforcement (DNR) were studied with a five-year-old girl with moderate mental retardation and a history of severe disruption. Escape from instructional trials was either contingent on a communicative behavior or compliance. Behaviors improved with both interventions, but compliance…

Data covering a 15-year period on the health, behavior, and functioning of 157 Scottish families of children with mental retardation and 165 comparison families were used in cluster analysis to obtain relatively homogeneous groupings of families. Only a small minority of families of children with mental retardation did not cluster together with…

Forty-eight adults with mental retardation assessed their daily living competency using the revised Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales. Compared to subject and counselor interviews and demonstrated competency, the self-evaluation yielded highly consistent results on domains measuring adaptive skills, though subjects underreported problematic…

This study explored the quality of the educational experience of 28 deaf adolescents as they communicated with hearing teachers through interpreters in experiential marine science workshops. Key issues identified included the teachers' knowledge of deafness, the interpreter's role, and behavior management. Implications are discussed in terms of…

The impact of a modified wilderness program on the cooperative and aggressive behaviors of seriously emotionally disturbed adolescents was evaluated in the context of self-efficacy theory. Results indicated that participating adolescents showed a significant increase in cooperative behaviors and that direct observation procedures were more…

Describes a desktop publishing project that uses computer-assisted instruction to engage students with severe behavioral problems in a more active learning environment. Topics discussed include the reinforcement from computers; benefits of computer-assisted instruction; hardware and software selection; staff training; evaluation; and future…

Investigated the relationship between school-related emotional and behavioral problems and variation in family structure in a sample of eighth graders. Found that among those who exhibited behavioral problems, such problems were two to four times as likely to occur in single-parent or step-families as in intact families and that gender was also a…