Date of Award

1997

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Psychology

Abstract

Behavioral and mental health approaches to consultation differ in theoretical foundation, interpersonal interaction style of the consultant, and identified source of problem assessment, interventions, and decision-making. These consultation approaches may yield different levels of consultation effectiveness. Studies conducted to date have not consistently found differences between these approaches in terms of consultation effectiveness. However, there have been methodological flaws in these studies. In order to determine if either approach yields better outcomes, a means of assessing consultation orientation (i.e., the theoretical approach endorsed by a psychologist) must be developed. The School-based Consultation Orientation Rating Scale (SCORS) was designed to measure the consultation orientation of school psychologists. The defining features that discriminate between behavioral and mental health approaches to consultation were incorporated into the SCORS. Initial scale development addressed issues of content-related validity. The SCORS was sent to 1000 members of the National Association of School Psychologists. Evidence to support construct-related validity and internal consistency was found using a cross-validation procedure. Factor analysis provided evidence for factorial validity, one form of construct-related validity. Coefficient alpha was established to enable the SCORS to be adequate as a research tool. Discriminant analyses were planned in order to determine if the profile of behavioral consultants differ from the profile of mental health consultants as measured by the SCORS. However, these analyses could not be computed because too few respondents endorsed the validation items in the manner predicted for a psychologist with a moderate to strong consultation orientation. Criterion-related validity must be established in future studies before the SCORS should be used to determine the relative effectiveness of the school-based consultation approaches. Researchers may also need to evaluate whether the majority of school psychologists endorse a single approach to consultation or if they understand the terms "behavioral" and "mental health" as they apply to consultation.

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