This book discusses how the radical psychosocial changes during the COVID-19 pandemic may impact neurodevelopment from birth through the transition to early adulthood, thereby altering the trajectory of psychological, social, and academic development in the years to come. The COVID-19 pandemic caused worldwide and sustained educational and…

Approximately 7% of children live with food allergy, a condition that requires dietary avoidance to prevent an allergic reaction. In this qualitative study, we aimed to understand food allergy-related experiences, beliefs and learning preferences among children with and without food allergies, to inform a school-based, food allergy education…

People with disabilities have been identified as representing the largest marginalized group worldwide. A negative attitude towards people with disabilities has been an extended paradigm in American society. Improving the treatment of people with disabilities has led to national policy and legislation changes. However, health inequities continue…

The present dissertation features two studies utilizing secondary data to explore the impact of geography on access to and utilization of early developmental services, including Part C early intervention (EI) and autism diagnosis. Both studies examined the role of geography on a micro-level using geographic information system (GIS) based…

Clinical Question: Would a bilingual preschooler with suspected speech sound disorder (P) be more accurately diagnosed via an assessment approach that integrates sociolinguistic information (I) or via standardized assessment with traditional scoring modifications (C) as shown by diagnostic compatibility with the converging concern approach (O)?…

Background: In 2016/17, the CATALISE Consortium published the results of a multinational and multidisciplinary Delphi consensus study, representing agreement among professionals about the definition and process of identification of children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) (Bishop et al., 2016, 2017). The extent to which the current…

Background: While it has been posited that young people with language needs may be viewed more negatively (e.g., as more rude, less cooperative) than those without language needs, the impact of knowing about a person's language needs on others' perceptions has yet to experimentally tested. Aims: To examine whether the presence of a developmental…

Objective: Psychiatric disorders, such as depression and anxiety, can hinder academic performance among college-age individuals. Participants: Mental health among college students is a growing public health concern, with some scholars describing collegiate mental health as a crisis (Chen et al., Psychiatr Serv. 2019;70(6):442-449). Methods: This…

Children with delays in expressive language (late talkers) have heterogeneous developmental trajectories. Some are late bloomers who eventually "catch-up," but others have persisting delays or are later diagnosed with developmental language disorder (DLD). Early in development it is unclear which children will belong to which group. We…

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) show atypical attention, particularly for social events. The new Multisensory Attention Assessment Protocol (MAAP) assesses fine-grained individual differences in attention disengagement, maintenance, and audiovisual matching for social and nonsocial events. We investigated the role of competing…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare child language assessment practices of speech-language pathologists (SLPs) working in school and non-school settings to determine if their place of employment impacts the diagnostic decision-making process. Method: School-based SLPs (e.g., direct service providers employed in preschool and/or K-12…

This study, using feminist trauma theory as the conceptual framework, addressed a gap in the literature about female university students' experiences with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to the academic and social supports needed for college success and degree completion. Nearly 30% of college students will drop out during their 1st…

Purpose: The purpose of this quality improvement (QI) project was to develop an activity to address paroxysmal sympathetic hyperactivity (PSH), a sequela of traumatic and acquired brain injury (TBI/ABI), and evaluate pre-/post-activity knowledge and comfort levels. Participants were also asked to approximate intent to change future practice and…

Advocating for a child's rights and needs is an experience shared by most families of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This qualitative study is an in-depth secondary content analysis of the discourse of 13 immigrant families on their advocacy experience during the early childhood period. Results revealed that, from very early on,…

Peer-assisted learning (PAL) in healthcare education encourages critical thinking, professional development, knowledge acquisition, and enhancement of clinical skills. In this paper, we describe the pilot of a dyad model of PAL used in an occupational therapy (OT) student experiential learning clinic for hand therapy, where two students at the…