This article discusses the current issues involved in the evaluation of children who have both intellectual gifts and a specific learning disability (SLD) in reading. Given recent changes in federal special education law (i.e., the Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004), the use of a unified assessment model that…

Does recognition memory rely on discrete recollection, continuous evidence, or both? Is continuous evidence sensitive to only the recency and duration of study (familiarity), or is it also sensitive to details of the study episode? Dual process theories assume recognition is based on recollection and familiarity, with only recollection providing…

This study aimed to develop a new scale, the "Supports Scale For Preschool Inclusion" (SSPI), to assess preschool teachers perceptions of necessary factors and availability of supports for a successful inclusion in pre-school educational settings. Pre-school teachers ("n" = 183, mean age = 32.81, standard deviation = 8.29) from…

Although the veridicality of unconscious perception is increasingly accepted, core issues remain unresolved [Jack, A., & Shallice, T. (2001). Introspective physicalism as an approach to the science of consciousness. "Cognition, 79," 161-196], and sharp disagreement persists regarding fundamental methodological and theoretical issues. The most…

The topic of sexuality and romantic relationships of people with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities was examined. We developed a questionnaire to investigate the 76 respondents' sexual knowledge, attitudes, experience, and needs. During the interviews, observational data were gathered to check the validity of the instrument. Results show…

Burleson and Goldsmith's (1998) comforting model suggests an appraisal-based mechanism through which comforting messages can bring about a positive change in emotional states. This study is a first empirical test of three causal linkages implied by the appraisal-based comforting model. Participants (N=258) talked about an upsetting event with a…

Status, which implies a positive evaluation by other members of the group, remains one aspect of group structure that has not received much theoretical or empirical evaluation. Although a number of researchers have focused on status and its emergence, the influence of the number of group members who share status has never been explored. This paper…

To understand the development of relational aggression during early childhood, 91 girls and boys ("M" age=39.0; "SD"=7.6 months) and their teachers participated in an 18-month longitudinal study. Children were observed for relational and physical aggression during free play in four time periods. Individually administered interviews were conducted…

Multiple (external) representations can provide unique benefits when people are learning complex new ideas. Unfortunately, many studies have shown this promise is not always achieved. The DeFT (Design, Functions, Tasks) framework for learning with multiple representations integrates research on learning, the cognitive science of representation and…

The psychometric literature is replete with comprehensive discussions of test validity, test validation, and the characteristics of quality assessment programs. The most authoritative source for guidance regarding sound test development and evaluation practices is the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing. However, the Standards are…

This article presents a fluency-based measure of reading comprehension. A part of the Vitals Indicators of Progress (VIP) system, the measure outlined here represents an alternate form to the retell-fluency measure in the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy System (DIBELS). Measures of retell fluency provide an efficient, fluency-based tool…

This article briefly reviews key issues in adolescent suicide risk assessment and proposes that assessing risk and protective factors in combination has the best probability of informing the field's understanding of this complex problem. Several newer measures are described along with summaries of their psychometric properties. A recommended…

The Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI) is being developed for the cross-cultural measurement of subjective wellbeing (SWB). This paper reports the findings of its utility with the Hong Kong Chinese and Australian populations. An item on affect, "satisfaction with own happiness" was also investigated to determine whether it should be added to…

Numerous existing measures assess attitudes toward suicide yet fail to account for contextual factors. The Trinity Inventory of Precursors to Suicide (TIPS) is presented as an alternative, with implications for the development of prevention programs. Having previously reported exploratory analysis of the TIPS; confirmatory factor analysis and…

The construct validity of the MMPI-2 (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2) College Maladjustment (Mt) Scale was examined using 376 student clients at a university psychological clinic. A principal components analysis and correlations of Mt scale scores with clients' and therapists' ratings of symptoms and functioning showed that the Mt…