Children with specific learning disabilities (SLD) have deficits in the basic psychological processes that interfere with learning and academic achievement, and for some SLD subtypes, these deficits can also lead to emotional and/or behavior problems. This study examined psychosocial functioning in 123 students, aged 6 to 11, who underwent…

Experiment I demonstrated that while LD children were judged more negatively under instruction to act naturally, these children were judged as positively as nondisabled children when prompted to ingratiate. In Experiment II, a group by instruction interaction was found and was similar in nature to that found in Experiment I. (Author/CL)

The paper reviews the interpersonal social difficulties of learning disabled students, discusses possible reasons for the lack of social skills instruction to this population, and addresses the need to teach them social skills. (CL)

The responses of 20 learning disabled (LD) and 20 normal children (9 to 11 years old) to a social inference task were compared. The LD children showed deficits in interpretation of the situation and determining consequences. No differences were found between groups in determining antecedents. (Author)

The article reviews work conducted on the assessment and training of social skills in learning disabled individuals, outlining cognitive social skills and overt social behaviors that should be included in interventions, and discussing assessment techniques (such as behavioral observation codes and sociometric techniques). (CL)

Staff of a private school were asked to identify characteristics apparently interfering with academic progress of 321 bright elementary children who were underachievers in reading. Results suggested the need to avoid treating reading problems in isolation. Examples of successful treatment approaches are cited. (CL)

Judgments of physically aggressive and learning disabled youth were compared with children with more appropriate behavior. No differences were found between aggressive and nonaggressive boys, suggesting that aggressive perceivers do not necessarily "project" their characteristics onto others. However, learning disabled boys, both aggressive and…

Fifteen learning disabled adolescents who participated in a social skills awareness program involving discussion and filmstrips significantly improved their posttest scores on the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale and on the Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation-Behavior, compared to a conrol group. No significant differences…

An approach to ameliorate social perception deficits in learning disabled children is described. Based on task analysis and diagnosis and prescription, the approach is seen to cover four stages in teaching nonverbal communication skills: discrimination of specific social cues (body language), understanding of the social meanings of such cues,…

The data suggested that both joining and conversation skills were problems for the boys, and that participation in the social skills training program resulted in improvement in interpersonal skills and in the frequency of interactions with peers. (Author)

Current hypotheses explaining the link between learning disability and delinquency are evaluated. An alternative hypothesis is proposed which postulates that ineffective social cognitive problem-solving skills increase risk for delinquency in learning-disabled youth. (Author/DB)

Parents of 22 adolescents diagnosed as learning disabled (LD) five years before, and parents of 22 nondisabled (ND) adolescents rated their children on 30 bipolar adjectives. Results showed that the LD adolescents were rated more negatively than ND adolescents in areas of self-satisfaction, delinquency, flexibility, sociability, and social skills.…

Forty-four fourth- and fifth-grade boys with and without learning disabilities (LD) completed a semi-structured interview measure of interpersonal understanding. They were also rated by their teachers on social adaptation in the classroom. Interpersonal understanding and social adaptation were positively correlated, and children with LD exhibited…

The article focuses on six components (physical environment, psychological climate, curriculum, materials, assessment and evaluation, and teacher facilitation) necessary for successful affective education for learning disability students. (CL)