acase@tulane.edu

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are one form of neurodevelopmental disruption that negatively impacts the integration of perceptual, affective and neuroregulatory mechanisms of typical development. Individuals with ASDs categorically demonstrate difficulties with organizing their thoughts/emotions/actions and applying them in a goal directed manner. The neurobiological deficits underlying cognitive and behavioral disorganization are termed executive functioning (EF) skills deficits. This study sought to clarify the association between the defining characteristics of ASDs and their expression in general behavior and EF skills, using parent and teacher ratings. Results of this study indicated that the association between the Behavior Assessment System for Children, Second Edition (BASC-2) and the symptoms of ASDs as measured by the Autism Spectrum Rating Scale (ASRS) varied by rater, with few clinical scales explaining significant variance in the ASRS outcomes. Additionally, the strongest relationship between the BASC-2 Developmental Social Disorders content scale (DSDCS) and the ASRS Scales was in behavior regulation rather than the social domain. Using the ASRS Scales as predictors of executive skills issues was generally stronger for teachers than parents. Only difficulties on the Self-Regulation Scale were consistently predictive of difficulties with Metacognition Index (MI) across parent and teacher ratings. The results give direction with regard to identifying behavioral and ecologically relevant cognitive skills and their relationship characteristics of ASDs.

Mental health disorders are rising in children and being referred to as an epidemic. Numerous studies have shown micronutrient deficiencies and poor diet quality are suspected of playing a contributory role in the escalation of certain disorders. However, there is no research in young children focusing specifically on social emotional disorders and possible links to nutrition. Conventional treatment for social emotional disorders in children typically involves medication. Parents are increasingly turning to complementary and alternative medicine to treat their children with a method that is individualized and holistic. The biopsychosocial model provided the theoretical framework for this correlational study that investigated the association between nutrient intake and social emotional functioning. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine if diet/health indicators were significant predictors of any of the subscale scores on the Behavior Assessment System for Children - Second Edition (BASC-2), Parent Rating Scale -Preschool social emotional variables. Intake of food categories was measured by the amount reported by a sample of 119 parents over a three-day period. Higher levels of processed food consumption significantly predicted higher scores of atypicality. Additionally, reporting a family history of mental illness was associated with lower levels of hyperactivity and depression. The relationships between the other diet quality/health indicators and social emotional functioning in children were non-significant. The results of this study offer an alternative or supplemental treatment modality to psychotropic drugs. With the increasing health and economic burden of mental health disorders in children, the investigation of risk factors such as nutrient intake, is an essential and pressing research initiative.

The overrepresentation of minority students identified for special education services continues to plague schools and serves as a challenge for researchers and practitioners (Ferri&Conner,2005). Teacher nomination, office discipline referrals (ODR), and functional behavior assessments (FBA) continue to guide referral processes (Bradshaw, Mitchell, O’Brennen, & Leaf, 2010; Eklund, et al., 2009; Mustian, 2010). These methods have been found to be riddled with inconsistencies. Practices used to identify students for behavioral and emotional interventions over-identify students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. The use of a behavioral and emotional screener to make data-based decisions regarding placement and services could provide an objective assessment of student risk. The first chapter of this dissertation reviews methods used in the identification of students for behavioral and emotional support services. Additionally, the use of universal screening in conjunction with student self-report are proposed as tools for alleviating the overrepresentation of minority students in special education programs for behavioral and emotional disorders. The second chapter of this dissertation explores the measurement equivalence of Behavior Assessment System for Children, Second Edition (BASC-2) Behavioral and Emotional Screening System Student form (BESS Student) across the Black, Hispanic, and White participants in the norming sample. The BESS Student as a universal screening tool is poised to alleviate the disproportionate number of children of color identified by schools as having behavior and emotional disorders. This instrument also provides an avenue to identify students with internalizing disorders who are often overlooked in present referral practices (Bradshaw, Buckley, & Ialongo, 2008; Kataoka, Zhang, & Wells, 2002). The findings of the measurement equivalence study suggests that the BESS Student is, as designed, identifying behavioral and emotional risk across each of the three groups explored. These findings support the use of a universal screening measure as the first step in a multi-step identification and intervention process. Following up with additional assessment to evaluate the specific areas of risk warranting intervention is pivotal to providing appropriate support services and promoting the behavioral and emotional health of students. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a source of diagnostic and intervention confusion and uncertainty for practitioners and parents. Questions creating some of the confusion were answered in a series of three studies. The sample was parent and teacher behavioral ratings for 389 children and 502 adolescents with ADHD and 3131 children and 3161 adolescents without ADHD in public and private schools and mental health clinics in forty states. In the first study, data was derived from participant T-scores on the Behavior Assessment System for Children (2nd ed.) to evaluate the construct validity using first and second order factor analyses. Sufficient construct validity was established. In the second study, descriptive discriminant analyses (DDA) and item level ANOVAs were used to investigate whether behaviors that discriminate between the target (i.e., ADHD) and comparison groups were associated with the primary symptoms, comorbid conditions, functional impairment, or some combination of the three. Analyses were completed using subscale T-scores and individual item scores from the target and comparison groups. Results were compared to determine if the behaviors that discriminated between the groups were consistent across developmental stages and between parents and teachers as raters. Primary symptoms, comorbid conditions, and functional impairment explained the variance as rated by parents and teachers. Primary symptoms were found to be the strongest discriminators of children and adolescents as rated by parents. Atypicality explained the largest variance (72.25%) between children and learning problems explained the largest variance (64.32%) between adolescents when rated by teachers. The third study was a literature review of intervention studies to increase the academic performance of youth with ADHD in light of the statistical significance controversy. Fifty-one single subject and group design studies of academic, behavioral, multimodal and parent training were found. Both sides of the statistical significance controversy were summarized. The method of result reporting for 23 group design studies was investigated. Seventy-seven percent of the studies reported results as ?significant? with 26% reporting effect sizes. Researchers are encouraged to report effect sizes and explicitly compare results to previous studies in order to establish replicability for ease of educator interpretation.

Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (EBD) directly influence learning, relationships, mood, and overall scholastic experiences. Research provides evidence that early intervention and prevention efforts can address the needs of students with EBD (Allen-DeBoer, Malmgren, & Glass, 2006; Cook, et al. 2008; Lien-Thorne & Kamps, 2005; Regan, Mastropieri, & Scruggs, 2005; Rivera, Al-Otiba, & Koorland, 2006), but in order to identify these at-risk youth, a screening system is needed to broadly consider Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Concerns (SEBC).This dissertation evaluated the alignment of a teacher nomination process (Teacher Nomination Form (TNF)) and a normative screener of EBD risk (BASC-2 Behavioral and Emotional Screening System (BESS), Kamphaus & Reynolds, 2007). Teacher nominations and rankings were significantly correlated to the BESS in the internalizing (.177), externalizing (.246), and combined categories (.304) groups. Multiple teacher nominations were not significantly related to BESS scores. Social validity evidence was gathered and interpreted.