Parents and professionals working with children with disabilities are urged to be alert to discrepancies between a child's usual behavior and capabilities and those exhibited during a formal testing or evaluation session. (DB)

The article describes an observational playroom procedure (Structured Observation of Academic and Play Settings) used for evaluating symptomatic behaviors of hyperactive boys in the clinic setting. Case studies are presented to illustrate the differing pattern of playroom behavior in boys with different types of externalizing disorders. (Author/DB)

This paper offers guidelines to compare the characteristics observed in children with autism and blindness and those observed in children with blindness alone. It distinguishes between stereotypic behaviors (blindisms) in blind individuals and similar stereotypic behaviors of children with autism. A table presents typical behavior patterns of…

The Autism Behavior Checklist was evaluated with 94 autistic and 63 nonautistic subjects. Although the two groups differed significantly in ratings of pathology both false positive and false negative diagnostic classifications occurred. The test appears to have merit as a screening instrument but should not be used alone to establish a diagnosis…

Describes the development of coping behavior in children and the role of coping behavior in dealing with conflict and anxiety. Defines various coping mechanisms including rationalization, projection, displacement, denial of reality, compensation, regression, and intellectualization. Outlines suggestions for helping children and parents understand…

A pair of 9-year-old boys with socioemotional and interpersonal difficulties was observed unobtrusively in 35 weekly hour-long therapy sessions over the course of 2 school years. A transcript/narrative analysis technique was used to identify all interpersonal negotiation strategies each child used within each session. Strategies were classified…

This review of recent empirical research on the effects of television on children and teenagers begins by examining the results of two surveys which were conducted to determine the opinions of experts in the field. A brief statement of the findings indicates that experts generally agree that television harms formal scholastic achievement while…

Parents and teachers must allow children to feel all their feelings, including anger. Children can be helped to accept their feelings and to channel and direct them to constructive ends. Discipline should be motivated by the need to protect and teach, not a desire to punish. (JAC)

This review examines signs indicating a child is reacting to a former traumatogenic event. Posttraumatic stress disorder, as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-III, Revised, can result when children are refugees, children of war, immigrants, migrants from a different environment, or when children have experienced a major trauma.…

Presents an overview of child abuse and the dynamics of the abusive family to provide basic information for school counselors regarding family violence and the generational pattern of child abuse. Discusses the role of the school counselor in providing help for abused children and abusive families. (Author/RC)

Social skills and levels of inappropriate assertiveness/impulsiveness were assessed using the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters, with 17 autistic children (ages 2-21) and 17 matched nonautistic children. Significant differences in both appropriate and inappropriate social behaviors were found. Results suggest the importance of…

This manual summarizes and highlights basic considerations in interviewing children. The relationship between interviewing for data collection and interviewing within the counseling or psychotherapeutic context is discussed. The Interviewer's Functional Checklist is presented to provide a method for self-evaluating interviewer behavior, and for…

This book outlines the basic tenets and applications of the theory of temperament based on the findings of the New York Longitudinal Study begun in 1956. It describes the concept and definition of temperament, reviews studies that support and expand on the definition, and explores temperament and its impact across various practice settings and…

This collection of articles summarizes what mental health professionals have learned about evaluating and treating infants and young children who have been exposed to violence in their homes and communities. Emphasis is on recognizing symptoms and behaviors demonstrated by very young children who have been exposed to violence, supporting…

This guide provides a review of the characteristics of children with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) or possible prenatal alcohol-related effects (PPAE) and describes specific intervention strategies. Section 1 offers a general review of the diagnostic procedures, the prevalence of FAS and the physical, educational, and behavioral characteristics of…