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To identify a student with LD, many school districts use a discrepancy model of achievement and cognition model (Mercer, Jordan, Allsop, & Mercer, 1996). Using this model, a school psychologist administers intelligence and achievement tests to see whether a large score discrepancy exists between the two. When a large score discrepancy occurs, the student is diagnosed as having an LD (this is true only when other possibilities have been ruled out). Although well intended, this model has had several flaws and has lead to a 200% increase in the incidence of LD (Vaughn, Linan-Thompson, & Hickman, 2003). Also, this model does not consider whether remedial instructional strategies appropriate for children at-risk for LD were employed. Furthermore, even if a child at-risk for LD was receiving remedial instruction, there is no mechanism to determine whether that instruction was appropriate. Last, rather than preventing learning problems, the discrepancy approach leads to a “wait-to-fail” school culture that encourages an ill-guided attempt to insure students receive services (Berkely, Bender, Peaster, & Saunders, 2009).

This article sets out to provide information regarding the evidence base for psychological treatments and to demonstrate that the number of mental health professionals who are available and competent to deliver these treatments is very small compared with the numbers of people who might benefit. The article also considers the prevalence of conditions that are amenable to psychological treatment and then explores how ‘stepped care’ may be one solution for providing available treatment resources in a way that is fairest and most effective for the population at large.

One limitation of research that assesses the effectiveness of physical activity interventions for people with dementia is that most do not describe the intervention in sufficient detail to ascertain a theoretical basis or mechanism of action that determines the effective components. This paper aims to identify studies which evaluate the mechanisms of action of physical activity interventions for people with dementia, to further inform effective intervention development.

Papers were screened for evidence of evaluation of specific forms of physical activity, using pre-defined inclusion criteria. Analysis was conducted to ascertain if mechanisms of action were corroborated by data within and between studies.

The authors identified 26 studies with a measured mechanism of action; these related to the effects of physical activity on either neurological structure or endocrinal markers, including hormones. Physical activity had potential to reduce hippocampal atrophy, increase neural recruitment, activate the noradrenergic system and improve anti-inflammatory responses. While individual studies were hampered by small sample sizes, the body of evidence indicated that physical activity may have potential to delay cognitive decline.

Mechanisms of action in relation to dementia and physical activity are likely to be multifaceted, and physical activity may be protective against progression in the early stages of cognitive decline. Physical activity may be of greatest benefit if incorporated into on-going lifestyle, rather than engaged in for short periods, and combined with social interaction.

This paper is unique in its focus on the mechanisms of action of physical activity interventions for people with dementia.

Childhood-onset schizophrenia (COS) refers to schizophrenia with onset of psychotic symptoms prior to a child's 13th birthday. Optimal treatment likely includes family-based services supplementing antipsychotic pharmacotherapy. However, family-based services can require adjustment based on parental psychopathology; there has been little literature exploring the frequency or type of psychopathology seen in parents of COS cases. This report includes the results of a structured psychiatric evaluation on 80 parents of a COS case with comparison to a sample of 304 parents. Having a child with psychosis and being of minority racial/ethnicity status increased risk for psychiatric illness. Psychotic disorders (15% vs. 5%), mood disorders (54% vs. 27%), anxiety disorders (30% vs. 18%), and substance use disorders (49% vs. 31%) were all increased in the parents with a psychotic child. Psychiatric illness is common in parents of a child with COS and will need to be considered as family-based services for COS are developed.

Admission to and transfer from an intensive care unit affects not only the patient but also his or her relatives. The authors aimed to investigate relatives' perceptions of quality of care during a patient's transfer process from an intensive care unit to a general ward.

The study had a mixed method design that included quantitative data and answers to open questions. The participants were 65 relatives of patients who received care in an ICU. They were recruited from two hospitals in Sweden.

A majority perceived the transfer process as important, but analysis also showed that the participants rated it as an area for improvements. The relatives wanted participation, personal insight and control, respectful encounters, proximity, reassurance, continuous quality, reconnection and feedback. The relatives' participation in the transfer process was perceived as inadequate by 61 per cent, and the support that was received after the ICU discharge was perceived as inadequate by 53 per cent. The patients' length of stay in the ICU affected the relatives' perceptions of the quality of care. Overall, the relatives seemed to desire that the transfer process includes a continuous care, a competent staff, available information throughout the transfer process and personal involvement in the care, both before and after the transfer from the ICU.

The conclusion of this study is that relatives' needs and seeking for a well-planned ICU transitional process organisation with continuous quality before and after transfer, informational strategies that encourage the relatives to be involved and an organisation with competence throughout the healthcare chain are vital for quality.

The conclusion of this study is that relatives' needs and seeking for a well-planned ICU transitional process organisation with continuous quality before and after transfer, informational strategies that encourage the relatives to be involved and an organisation with competence throughout the healthcare chain are vital for quality.

The findings have important implications for nursing and nursing management. A relative's perception of the quality of care before and after transfer from ICU may be a valuable source to evaluate the ICU transitional care.

The following chapter discusses common approaches to academic interventions and methods for intensifying instruction when previous attempts at instruction have failed. Contemporary research on intensive intervention is discussed along with competing frameworks for operationalizing intensive intervention to meet the needs of struggling learners.

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) show reduced attention to social stimuli. The reasons for these impairments are still being debated by researchers. The aim of this study is to analyse if reduced attention towards social stimuli is determined by initial underlying difficulties in the control of visual attention. Among the variables that could produce these difficulties, the authors considered geometric complexity and typology of geometric figures.

To test this hypothesis, in this paper, an eye-tracker paradigm was used for assessing visual exploration and recognition memory towards geometric figures (curved vs rectilinear) with two levels of geometric complexity (low and high) in 17 children with ASD matched with 17 children with typical development (TD).

The results showed that the ASD group seemed indifferent to both the geometric complexity and the typology of figures (curved and rectilinear), whereas the TD group showed higher performances with highly complex and curved geometric figures than with low complex and rectilinear geometric figures.

Because of the chosen research approach, the research results may lack generalizability. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed hypotheses further.

This paper includes implications upon the presence of an unspecified visual attention deficit that is present from the early stages of the processing of stimuli.

The understanding of this deficit from the early stages of the processing of stimuli can help educators to intervene at an early stage when disturbances in social relationships are starting.

This study contributes to understanding the presence of dysfunctional perceptual antecedents that could determine general difficulties in paying attention to social stimuli in ASD subjects.

This article challenges the effectiveness of public surveillance by closed circuit television. Based upon evaluations conducted in the West of England, there is little evidence of systems delivering crime reduction or significant increases in detection.

In this introductory chapter of volume 32 of Advances in Learning and Behavioral Disabilities, we provide an overview of the considerations of intensive, individualized interventions and preview the 10 chapters in the volume. We asked chapter authors to consider the full scope of delivering such learning and behavioral interventions – describing tiered systems of support, identifying students who require intensive and individualized interventions, presenting elements associated with such interventions, and identifying specific examples of intensive and individualized interventions.

Identifying students for intensive intervention (also referred to as Tier 3 supports) is most effective when implemented within a tiered system of support. Effective tiered systems include both academic and behavioral supports for identifying and serving students with varied needs. In this chapter, we review existing research, discuss current practice, and offer guidance for identifying students with intensive academic and/or behavioral needs.