Parental attitudes of inclusion

The purpose of this qualitative study was to develop an understanding of parents’ attitudes towards inclusion. This investigation focused on parental perspectives of inclusion based on their child’s receipt of educational services. Perceived implications of inclusion were relative to each participant; therefore, results could not be considered generalizable. This study employed purposive sampling in acquiring participants. Eligibility for this study included being the parent/guardian of a child who received special education services in school. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data, allowing participants to tell their story about their experiences with inclusion. Parents in this study were eager to share their attitudes towards inclusion, speaking candidly about their children’s successes attributed to inclusion as well as issues experienced. Parents identified a number of outcomes of inclusion, namely, social interaction, self-esteem, instructional support, and normalcy.

Exploring the stages of change and perceived barriers to treatment models within the context of parental adherence to an early intervention program

Parent-mediated early intervention programs depend on the willingness and ability of parents to complete prescribed activities with their children. In other contexts, internal factors, such as stages of change, and external factors, such as barriers to treatment, have been shown to correlate with adherence to service. This researcher modified the Stages of Change Questionnaire as well as the Barriers to Treatment Participation Scale (BTPS) to use with this population. Despite initial interest, twenty-three parent participants were referred to the researcher over the course of three years, with only five parents taking part in the study. A population base ten times that of the current sample would be required recruit enough participants (fifty-one) to provide sufficient power. This feasibility study discusses the results of the five parent participants. Findings suggest that the modified Stages of Change Questionnaire may not be sensitive enough for use with the current sample, while the modified BTPS may yield useful information for service providers.

Exploring the Role of Parental Hearsay when Children Witness a Crime

In cases of potential child abuse, parents may provide hearsay testimony on behalf of a child, retelling events from the child’s perspective. However, according to the limited research that exists, parents may have a negative impact on their child’s memory of an event (Principe, DiPuppo, & Gammel, 2013). In order to gain a better understanding of parental hearsay, parents’ descriptions of information children provided in recorded parent-child discussions were compared to the actual information the children provided in the initial discussion and in a 1-week follow-up interview. Children interviewed by parents were also compared to children interviewed by a trained interviewer. To date, 11 children between the ages of 6-9 years have been assessed. While the current sample size was too small to yield many significant results, graphs and effect sizes suggest there are differences in memory accuracy and completeness between parents and children and across children’s interview condition. Whether hearsay testimony or children’s testimony is preferable may depend on how suggestive the initial parent-child discussion is.