In a study involving 40 nonhandicapped preschoolers, the child's sex and the interaction between sex and label did not influence performance ratings, test scores, or the examiners' verbal behavior. The label "developmentally delayed," however had a negative impact on children's test scores and performance ratings. (Author/CL)

Investigation of examiners' (N=44) evaluations of writing performance of learning-disabled (LD) students indicated that the LD label influenced ratings assigned by examiners (undergraduate education students) who were simply familiarized with the scoring procedure. Evaluations by examiners who received additional practice and training were not…

The influence of disability labels, writing behavior of the person labeled, evaluator's expertise, and the interaction between these variables on the scores assigned to children's writing was examined. Disability labels did not affect the score, but the quality of writing and the examiner's expertise had a significant influence. (JAZ)

This investigation sought to determine the extent to which examiners' evaluations of writing performance were influenced by the learning disability label and to identify mediating variables which modify expectancy effects. Forty-four preservice regular education teachers were randomly assigned to one of two expectancy conditions (learning-disabled…