The Influence of Socio-Economic Status and Age on Diagnosis and Service Recommendations for Psycho-Educationally Handicapped Children.

Autor/in	Kelsey, John W.
Titel	The Influence of Socio-Economic Status and Age on Diagnosis and Service Recommendations for Psycho-Educationally Handicapped Children.
Quelle	, (5 Seiten)Verfügbarkeit
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; Monographie
Schlagwörter	Age; Bias; Certification; Educational Diagnosis; Elementary Education; Handicapped Children; Labeling (of Persons); Psychoeducational Methods; Research Projects; School Psychologists; Socioeconomic Status + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Alter; Lebensalter; Abschlusszeugnis; Zertifizierung; Pedagogical diagnostics; Pädagogische Diagnostik; Elementarunterricht; Labeling-Ansatz; Forschungsvorhaben; School psychologist; Psychologists; School; Schools; Schulpsychologe; Schulpsychologin; Psychologe; Psychologin; Psychologen; Schule; Socio-economic status; Sozioökonomischer Status
Abstract	With the advent of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, (P.L. 94-142), diagnostic evaluations and recommendations for service should proceed on a logical and unbiased basis. Studies from the past decade have suggested that there is considerable bias in diagnostic labeling due to socioeconomic status and age of the child. In turn this often predicts the services offered by the schools. A drawback of the previous research has been that although bias was easily demonstrated, the initiating personnel could not be traced. In the current study, 50 certified school psychologists were randomly assigned to four experimental conditions and presented case material with varying age and socioeconomic status. They were then asked to make recommendations concerning placement, therapeutic, and educational services, and degree of the child's various problems. Each group recognized the need and there was no evidence that recommendations were biased. Although generalization on a national basis should be cautious, this study suggested that certified school psychologists were not the origin of the bias noted in other studies. This implies that: (1) school districts could benefit from using only certified school psychologists; and (2) bias comes when services are rendered, not when they are recommended. (Author)
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2004/1/01