Behavioural and emotional problems in hearing impaired children: a preliminary study of teacher and parent ratings
Titel:
Behavioural and emotional problems in hearing impaired children: a preliminary study of teacher and parent ratings
Auteur:
Vostanis, Panos Hayes†, Margaret FEU, Margaret Du
Verschenen in:
European journal of special needs education
Paginering:
Jaargang 12 (1997) nr. 3 pagina's 239-246
Jaar:
1997-10
Inhoud:
The aim of this paper is to measure the rate of behavioural and emotional problems in children with severe to profound hearing impairment, as rated by teachers and parents. Children (N = 46) were selected from a nursery and primary school for the deaf. Two-thirds of the sample used both British Sign Language (BSL) and some form of oral communication, and 35 per cent used BSL only. Teachers completed the Teacher's Checklist and the Teacher Report Form, and parents completed the equivalent Parent's Checklist and Child Behaviour Checklist. According to the Teacher's Checklist, which had the lowest cut-off score, about 11 per cent of the children presented with significant behavioural/emotional difficulties that would justify clinical assessment and treatment. The rate of these problems was three to six times lower than the rate of similar problems as detected by parents. Poor functioning at school was the variable that best predicted the presence of behavioural and emotional problems. The findings are discussed in relation to the early introduction of methods of communication, particularly sign language, for children with hearing impairment.