Psychoeducational Assessment Research Articles

Psychoeducational assessment of students with intellectual disability: professional-action framework analysis.

The right to educational inclusion for students with intellectual disability (SWID) requires the development of good assessment and intervention practices from holistic perspectives not exclusively focused on the academic limitations that SWID may present. These practices are settled in Spain, via regulations drawn up by each Autonomous Community (AC). The variety of existing regulations demands a critical review of the decisions taken to promote the inclusion of those students. current regulations-in-force in each AC that regulate attention to diversity (AD) have been were analyzed by using a checklist that includes the variables that defining each stage of the AD process and the ways of providing supports that favor the development, learning and participation of SWID. attention to diversity measures in each AC emphasize organizational and curricular issues, with no AC following holistic approaches in both assessment and intervention, but rather neglecting self-determination and the promotion of quality of life for SWID. guidelines for the development of new legal frameworks and professional practices based on the latest evidence-based models of attention to SWID and on the results are discussed.

El cuestionario sociométrico Guess Who 4 como screening de la competencia social en educación primaria

Este trabajo presenta la adaptación y validación española del Cuestionario
 Sociométrico Guess Who 4 (GW4) (Mavroveli, Petrides, Sangareau, &
 Furnham, 2009), que evalúa la reputación social en el contexto del
 grupo-aula, fundamentado en la técnica de evaluación por pares de
 Coie & Dodge (1988). La muestra se compone de 668 alumnos de
 tercero a sexto de Educación Primaria, y edades comprendidas entre 7-13
 años (M= 9.6, DT= 1.11). Se analizan las correlaciones del GW4 con
 problemas emocionales y de conducta infantil, y rendimiento académico,
 en función del sexo. Los resultados avalan la fiabilidad y validez criterial
 del instrumento para la evaluación breve de la competencia social, con
 fines de investigación o de aplicación en la práctica de la evaluación
 psicoeducativa y la orientación psicopedagógica.

Introduction to a Special Issue on Simulation Studies as a Means of Informing Psychoeducational Testing and Assessment

This introduction provides a brief overview of simulation studies and outlines the organization of this special issue. Simulation studies provide a valuable, albeit underutilized, means of informing psychoeducational testing and assessment. The goal of this special issue is to equip applied researchers and clinicians with knowledge and skills needed to conduct simulation studies. It is envisioned that increased adoption of this innovative practice will ultimately improve the quality of psychoeducational tests, testing and assessment practices, and clinical decision making.

Psychometric Markers of Genuine and Feigned Neurodevelopmental Disorders in the Context of Applying for Academic Accommodations

The article reviews systemic and context-specific challenges of psychoeducational assessment using two case studies: a 19-year-old woman with feigned attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and a 50-year-old man with genuine dyslexia. These cases demonstrate that providing a thorough evaluation of performance validity is an essential component of determining eligibility for academic accommodations in both clinical and higher education settings. At the same time, discounting failure on certain performance validity tests may be necessary to protect against false positive errors. In addition, empirically based test selection and interpretation has the potential to enhance the clinical confidence during differential diagnosis. Examining the internal consistency of a given neurocognitive profile provides valuable clinical information to determine both the credibility of the overall presentation and applying established diagnostic criteria. Although clinical research has yet to identify definitive markers of non-credible neurocognitive profiles, a multivariate approach to performance validity assessment that combines empirically validated indicators and sound clinical judgment can improve detection rates while simultaneously protecting against false positive errors.

Barriers to Adherence to Child Assessment Recommendations

We conducted a one-year follow-up study of child psychoeducational assessment cases to examine whether and how the assessments were helpful to families. The current report focuses on parents’ views of their child’s assessment as well as the parents’ adherence with the written recommendations provided to them following their child’s assessment. Fifty-one of 72 eligible parents whose child received an assessment in an urban, Midwest university clinic participated. Based on semistructured interviews with the parents about the assessment recommendations, we grouped the recommendations and any barriers to adherence the parents mentioned into categories, and we also rated the clarity and complexity of the recommendations. Findings showed that, on average, parents identified the assessment process as useful and attempted or fully adhered to 71.5 % of recommendations. Parents reported the lowest adherence when referrals were recommended for their child to be seen by other professionals such as a pediatrician or psychiatrist; and they cited significantly more stigma barriers for recommendations to seek counseling/therapy or psychotropic medication than for recommendations pertaining to changes at home or school. Higher parental compliance was predicted by a combination of parents reporting fewer barriers and receiving more home based recommendations. The results support the utility of psychological assessments from parents’ perspectives and suggest ways in which psychologists may increase the likelihood that parents will adhere to their recommendations.

A Systematic Examination of the Linguistic Demand of Cognitive Test Directions Administered to School-Age Populations

The selection and interpretation of individually administered norm-referenced cognitive tests that are administered to culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students continue to be an important consideration within the psychoeducational assessment process. Understanding test directions during the assessment of cognitive abilities is important, considering the high-stakes nature of these assessments. Therefore, the linguistic demand of spoken test directions from the following commonly used cognitive test batteries was examined and compared: Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition (WISC-V), Woodcock–Johnson IV Tests of Cognitive Abilities (WJ IV COG), Cognitive Assessment System, Second Edition (CAS2), and Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, Second Edition (KABC-II). On average, the linguistic demand of the standard test directions was greater than the linguistic demand of the supplementary test directions. When examining individual test characteristics, very few individual tests were identified as outliers with respect to the linguistic demand of their test directions. This finding differs from previous research and suggests that the linguistic demand of the required directions for most tests included in commonly used cognitive batteries is similar. Implications for future research and test development are discussed.

Evidence-Based Assessment of ADHD in Youth Using a Receiver Operating Characteristic Approach

Guidelines exist for the assessment of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but they are often unclear as to how a clinician should consider multiple informants, methods, and co-occurring symptoms to reach an overall diagnostic probability for an individual patient. The current study used receiver operating characteristic analyses and evidence-based medicine methods to evaluate the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment measures and the Conners’ Continuous Performance Test for ADHD diagnosis in youth. Children (n = 379) and their parent(s) presented at an outpatient clinic for a psychoeducational assessment. Analyses examined the diagnostic efficiency and utility of study measures for predicting a best-estimate ADHD diagnosis. The Child Behavior Checklist Attention Problems construct, Teacher Report Form Attention Problems construct, and Hit Reaction Time Standard Error showed adequate diagnostic efficiency and unique contributions to the prediction of ADHD, Combined Type diagnosis. None of these measures showed good diagnostic efficiency or utility for the prediction of ADHD, Predominantly Inattentive Type. Child anxiety did not moderate the relations between predictors and ADHD diagnosis. Both the Child Behavior Checklist and Teacher Report Form Attention Problems constructs can discriminate youth with ADHD, Combined Type from other clinic-referred youth. Although Hit Reaction Time Standard Error also showed diagnostic utility, the decision to include a computerized measure should consider time and expense and be utilized in cases where diagnostic probability is unclear. Finally, anxiety may be associated with elevated attention problems, but it does not appear that anxiety affects diagnostic cutoffs for ADHD.

Compreensão em Leitura no Ensino Fundamental

Resumo O objetivo deste estudo foi explorar a habilidade de compreensão de leitura de alunos do ensino fundamental de diferentes estados e escolas. Participaram 1316 alunos de escolas públicas dos estados de São Paulo, Minas Gerais e Paraná. Foi utilizado um texto de 83 vocábulos, preparado segundo a técnica de Cloze, em sua versão tradicional, em que se omitem todos os quintos vocábulos do texto. A aplicação foi coletiva, e os dados, submetidos à estatística descritiva e inferencial. Identificou-se que o nível de habilidade detectado foi o instrucional e houve diferenças relativas aos estados comparados e o tipo de escola. Os dados são discutidos em termos de suas implicações para a área de avaliação psicoeducacional.

Attention Problems as a Mediator of the Relation between Executive Function and Social Problems in a Child and Adolescent Outpatient Sample.

Social functioning is critical for the successful navigation of everyday life for children, adolescents, and adults. Recent theories have postulated a neuropsychological basis for social functioning with particularly strong links with the executive functioning (EF) system. The current study examined attention problems as a mediator between EF (e.g., working memory, planning, and response inhibition) and social functioning in a child and adolescent outpatient sample. Participants were 218 children ages 6-16 (M=10.23; SD=2.52; 68.8% males) who were referred to an outpatient clinic for psychoeducational assessment. Bias-corrected bootstrapping mediation analyses were used to examine the hypothesized models. The effects of working memory and planning (but not response inhibition) on social problems were mediated by attention problems in both teacher- and mother-reported models. These findings also held up in cross-source models (e.g., mother-reported attention problems as a mediator in a model predicting teacher-reported social problems). These findings have implications for dimensional models of social functioning and conceptual models for specific clinical populations (e.g., attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder).

La Psychologie Scolaire au Québec Français-School Psychology in French Quebec

Psychology and more importantly, school psychology has undergone many changes in French Quebec since the last special issue was published on the subject matter, close to two decades ago. Quebec is a “breeding ground” for psychologists as more than two thirds of Canada’s psychology professionals practice in this province alone. Since the mid 2000’s, a doctoral degree is now required for licensing and registration to the professional order, the Order of Psychologists of Quebec (OPQ). Although this field has since evolved, other aspects of the profession remain unchanged. For one, professional shortages and recruitment challenges (i.e. unrealistic student to psychologist ratios) represent a major obstacle to service provision. Hence, the primary duty of psychologists working in schools remains to perform psychoeducational assessments for coding purposes. Much work and advocacy is still needed to further the practice of school psychology in Quebec. Professional practice, training and, future perspectives of school psychology are further discussed in the current paper.

Clinical Reasoning in School Psychology

School psychologists typically conduct psychological and psychoeducational assessments, provide prevention and intervention services, and consult and collaborate with allied professionals (e.g., teachers, physicians, psychiatrists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, social workers, and nurses) and parents toward better understanding and promoting the learning and development of children and youth. Within and across these roles, school psychologists maximize their judgments by utilizing psychometrically sound instruments, recommending and using empirically based intervention programs and approaches, and making informed decisions based on theory, research, and clinical experience. The purposes of this article and this special edition of the Canadian Journal of School Psychology are to promote the relevance and significance of clinical reasoning in this complex process of full service delivery and highlight examples of the effective thinking and decision making undertaken by school psychologists from assessment to intervention.

Book Review: Psychological and psychoeducational assessment of deaf and hard of hearing children and adolescents, by M. S. Miller, T. N. Thomas-Presswood, K. Metz, & J. Lukomski

Book Review: <i>Psychological and psychoeducational assessment of deaf and hard of hearing children and adolescents</i>, by M. S. Miller, T. N. Thomas-Presswood, K. Metz, &amp; J. Lukomski

Visual motor integration as a screener for responders and non-responders in preschool and early school years: implications for inclusive assessment in Oman

ABSTRACTVisual motor integration (VMI) is the ability of the eyes and hands to work together in smooth, efficient patterns. In Oman, there are few effective methods to assess VMI skills in children in inclusive settings. The current study investigated the performance of preschool and early school years responders and non-responders on a VMI test. The full range test of visual motor integration (FRTVMI) was administered to a sample of 359 children from preschool and elementary school settings in Oman. A two-way analysis of variance showed that there are statistically significant differences in VMI between preschool and early school non-responders. Gender did not show any effect on preschool children's performance on the FRTVMI, whereas it had an effect on elementary school children's performance. Results of the study are discussed in relation to the use of VMI assessment in screening for responders and non-responders in preschool and elementary school settings. Implications for psycho-educational assessment of children who struggle academically in inclusive settings are presented.

Supervision of clinical assessment: The Multilevel Assessment Supervision and Training (MAST) approach

Supportive and effective clinical supervision is imperative to the training and development of assessment skills in clinical psychology. This article presents the development of the Multilevel Assessment Supervision and Training approach, a clinic-based method to supervision of assessment. This approach utilizes advanced predoctoral students to serve as peer supervisors for beginning predoctoral trainees conducting psychoeducational assessments. It offers several advantages, providing a peer mentoring supervisory experience during graduate education, improving the training experience and oversight for beginning trainees, and improving service delivery. Satisfaction ratings were collected from graduate trainees and their peer supervisors who support the utility of this approach.

We need psychologists!

Paediatricians are more likely than ever to encounter patients with mental health problems on a daily basis. There is a need for investment in proven treatments, such as psychology-based interventions, for children identified with mental health disorders. There are four main arguments supporting the engagement of psychologists for children with mental health problems: there is clear evidence that psychological interventions can effectively treat a wide range of mental health disorders; many parents and children are more open to exploring psychological therapies rather than medication for mental health problems; psychologists are trained and licensed to perform psychoeducational assessments, which can provide invaluable information about a child's learning profile, attention problems and overall intelligence; and behaviour problems in children can be prevented or improved through parent-based interventions. The authors' strongly advocate for the public funding of psychology services - both in collaborative primary care models and in the school setting.

Assessing verbal functioning in South African school beginners from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds: A comparison between verbal working memory and vocabulary measures

This study investigated whether measures of verbal working memory are less sensitive to children’s socioeconomic background than traditional vocabulary measures. Participants were 120 school beginners, divided into high and low socioeconomic groups. The groups contained equal numbers of English first-language and second-language speakers. All were being educated in English. The results suggest that socioeconomic status accounts for considerable variance in vocabulary measures, while it explains only very small amounts of variance in working memory measures. In addition, the high socioeconomic group performed significantly better on the two vocabulary tests relative to the low socioeconomic group, while there were no significant differences between the groups on all but one of the four working memory tests. Working memory assessments appear to be less influenced by environmental factors and may constitute fairer forms of evaluation for children from differing socioeconomic backgrounds. As such, working memory measures may be a valuable supplement to psychoeducational assessment batteries.

We need psychologists! Paediatr Child Health

Paediatricians are more likely than ever to encounter patients with mental health problems on a daily basis. There is a need for investment in proven treatments, such as psychology-based interventions, for children identified with mental health disorders. There are four main arguments supporting the engagement of psychologists for children with mental health problems: there is clear evidence that psychological interventions can effectively treat a wide range of mental health disorders; many parents and children are more open to exploring psychological therapies rather than medication for mental health problems; psychologists are trained and licensed to perform psychoeducational assessments, which can provide invaluable information about a child’s learning profile, attention problems and overall intelligence; and behaviour problems in children can be prevented or improved through parent-based interventions. The authors’ strongly advocate for the public funding of psychology services – both in collaborative primary care models and in the school setting.

Editorial

For the last issue of the year the journal reverts to a mix of papers after the special edition on psycho-educational assessment. The first is a paper on career choice of Australian secondary school students by Natal'ya Galliott, Linda Graham and Naomi Sweller. We really appreciate these papers on careers as so few are submitted to the journal. Hopefully if you find this paper interesting you might consider writing something on this aspect of our work either as a research paper or for the practitioners’ section of the journal.

Intellectually gifted students with possible characteristics of ASD: a multiple case study of psycho-educational assessment practices

The Strengths and Weaknesses Heuristic (S&W Heuristic) was constructed in order to reduce biased assessments of students with (suspicion of) Intellectual Giftedness in co-occurrence with Autism Spectrum Disorder (IG + ASD) and to establish a well-founded interconnection between assessment data and intervention indications. The current study is the second in the validation process of the S&W Heuristic. An in-depth analysis of three assessment dossiers of Dutch IG-students with possible characteristics of ASD is focused upon. The core question is whether the S&W Heuristic is of added value to diminish bias in any direction and increase systematicity. The results indicate that bias, mainly directed at Strengths, as well as unsystematicity were present in different stages of two assessment dossiers. The conclusion is that the S&W Heuristic seems to pave the way for systematicity and less bias in assessment processes of students with (suspicion of) IG + ASD.

The effect of achievement test selection on identification of learning disabilities within a patterns of strengths and weaknesses framework.

Few empirical investigations have evaluated learning disabilities (LD) identification methods based on a pattern of cognitive strengths and weaknesses (PSW). This study investigated the reliability of LD classification decisions of the concordance/discordance method (C/DM) across different psychoeducational assessment batteries. C/DM criteria were applied to assessment data from 177 second-grade students based on 2 psychoeducational assessment batteries. The achievement tests were different, but were highly correlated and measured the same latent construct. Resulting LD identifications were then evaluated for agreement across batteries on LD status and the academic domain of eligibility. The 2 batteries identified a similar number of participants as having LD (80 and 74). However, indices of agreement for classification decisions were low (κ = .29), especially for percent positive agreement (62%). The 2 batteries demonstrated agreement on the academic domain of eligibility for only 25 participants. Cognitive discrepancy frameworks for LD identification are inherently unstable because of imperfect reliability and validity at the observed level. Methods premised on identifying a PSW profile may never achieve high reliability because of these underlying psychometric factors. An alternative is to directly assess academic skills to identify students in need of intervention.