Patterns of interprofessional conflict resolution on school child study teams

Abstract

This study proposes to investigate perceived and desired methods of conflict resolution by school psychologists, social workers, and learning disability specialists. Data were based on responses to a questionnaire which requested information on how decisions were reached or should have been reached when their child study teams were required to classify a child and there were conflicting opinions between professional groups. While majority vote and resolution by the psychologist accounted for the methods most often used in actual resolutions, there were great disagreements between professions as to how resolutions should have been made. Analysis indicates that the school psychologists are generally satisfied because they are the single group most often making final decisions, but they are generating feelings of discontent among other the other groups which suggst that team functioning and decision making, especially during voting, may be overly affected by interprofessional rivalry rather than objective data.