Abstract Out-of-home placement decisions are complex due to unpredictable nature of the cases, major impact on the family and the involvement of professionals from multiple disciplines. Previous...Show moreAbstract Out-of-home placement decisions are complex due to unpredictable nature of the cases, major impact on the family and the involvement of professionals from multiple disciplines. Previous research on agreement regarding placement decisions shows inconsistent findings. Case factors have previously been investigated in studies for risk assessment instruments, risk factors and protective factors in families. In addition, the mindset towards change can play a role in making a placement decision. The current study investigated whether (1) there is a difference in the weight of the various case factors (child factors, professional support factors and family factors), (2) there is a relationship between the weight of the case factors and professional background and (3) there is a relationship between the weight of the various case factors and the mindset towards change. 22 children's judges, 31 youth care workers, 36 Master's students Youth Law and 38 Master’s students Pedagogical Sciences participated in the study. Participants read 4 vignettes and filled in questionnaires on the weighting of the case factors after reading each vignette. Mindset towards change was measured once with a questionnaire. The results showed that the weighting of case factors differed significantly. Child factors weighed most heavily in the decision, followed by professional support factors and family factors, respectively. Professional background was unrelated to the weighting of the case factors. There was an interaction effect for the Master's students in Pedagogical Sciences, who seemed to weigh Professional Support Factors and Child factors with almost equal value while the other groups distinguished between the two factors. Weighting of the case factors and the mindset towards change were unrelated. Future research is needed to provide tools and points for improvement for better final decisions. Keywords: out-of-home placement, decision-making, mindset, case factors, child factors, care factors, parent factors, family factors, vignettesShow less
Children with Coffin Siris Syndrome (CSS) have a rare inherited disorder that primarily arises from mutations within several genes. CSS most frequently results from a mutation of the ARID1B-gene...Show moreChildren with Coffin Siris Syndrome (CSS) have a rare inherited disorder that primarily arises from mutations within several genes. CSS most frequently results from a mutation of the ARID1B-gene and is related to autism spectrum disorders as well. One of the core features that recurs in both disorders is impaired social interaction. Mastery motivation appears to predict social communication, among other things. This study describes mastery motivation in children with CSS and examines the question whether mastery motivation is related to ASD characteristics in children with CSS. The goal of the study is to prevent children from developing long-term difficulties in social communication by starting early with interventions that increase mastery motivation. Mastery motivation will help clinicians better understand people with CSS and improve on their treatment. This study consists of 9 girls and 6 boys between 49 and 216 months of age from the Netherlands or Belgium. In this study, the DMQ-18 and the SRS-2 were used to map mastery motivation and ASD characteristics. General cognitive functioning was measured by using an age-appropriate intelligence test. Correlations and single regression have been performed to answer the questions posed in the research. This study confirmed that there is a correlation between ASD characteristics and mastery motivation in children with CSS. There is also a correlation between the instrumental aspect of mastery motivation and ASD characteristics. Children with CSS show ASD characteristics. Many ASD characteristics, like social communication problems, are associated with less mastery motivation. Less mastery motivation will cause children with CSS to be less motivated to perform a challenging task. It is crucial children with CSS to engage in social persistence and social competence. Social interaction will be encouraged and this will ensure positive outcomes in life and school.Show less
Children with problems in the development of early literacy are at risk for reading difficulties in later life. Weak executive functioning might contribute to this. Therefore, fostering early...Show moreChildren with problems in the development of early literacy are at risk for reading difficulties in later life. Weak executive functioning might contribute to this. Therefore, fostering early literacy skills is of great importance. Digital books and interactive reading may support this development. The current study examines the impact of reading digital storybooks in a classroom setting using the interactive reading program e-Prent&ABC. This program involves reading techniques such as semantic consolidation and print referencing to stimulate early literacy skills, including vocabulary and print knowledge. The relationship between these components of early literacy and executive functions such as working memory, cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control is also explored. Based on previous research, it is hypothesized that reading using print referencing would result in more growth in vocabulary and print knowledge than reading through semantic consolidation. Additionally, it is hypothesized that working memory and cognitive flexibility would mainly contribute to growth in vocabulary, while inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility would contribute to growth in print knowledge. This within-subject design study used a sample of 85 children (41 girls, M = 63 months, SD = 6.1 months). Various questionnaires were employed to measure book-related vocabulary, print knowledge, visual working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility. The results show that print referencing does not lead to more growth in vocabulary than semantic consolidation, but it does in print knowledge, which implies that interactive reading is beneficial for the development of early literacy. Furthermore, it appears that visual working memory, cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control are not significant predictors of vocabulary and print knowledge, meaning e-Prent&ABC might compensate for the negative effects of lower levels of executive functioning. This study contributes to the advancement of inclusive education for children with diverse learning needs, levels of literacy and executive functioning.Show less
Testing the cognitive abilities of children in educational settings is mostly done with static tests. Research has found that dynamic tests can provide additional information to static tests....Show moreTesting the cognitive abilities of children in educational settings is mostly done with static tests. Research has found that dynamic tests can provide additional information to static tests. Dynamic tests can determine the learning potential and need for instruction of children, which are suggested to be good predictors for future academic results. Moreover, these dynamic tests are less subject to bias. Unfortunately, dynamic tests are often labour-intensive and therefore hardly used in practice. This study aims to investigate the use of a shortened dynamic test, with a graduated-prompts procedure, to determine students’ need for instruction. Participants were 66 regular primary school children (M = 10.89 years, SD = .53 years). The shortened dynamic test was a geometric analogies task, appealing to inductive reasoning. Teachers were asked to estimate the individual need for instruction of their students, for both math and reading comprehension, in levels of ‘no help’, ‘meta-cognitive help’, ‘cognitive help’ and ‘modelling’. The Cito scores for math and reading comprehension were obtained for every student. Only a few students needed modelling help during the shortened dynamic test. Therefore, the cognitive help and modelling were combined for the sake of reliability and usability of this study. Teacher’s perspective could predict the Cito scores to a large extent, especially for math. The results of the shortened dynamic test added slightly to this explanation, but only for math. Reading comprehension requires more than just inductive reasoning, such as vocabulary, which was beyond the scope of the shortened dynamic test. Regardless of the limitations of this study, the shortened dynamic test show promise as an objective ‘check’. For instance, for unexperienced teachers who are uncertain about the need for instructions for a student. Finally, this study may prove to be a valuable stepping stone to future research in the field of shortened dynamic tests.Show less
When the development or safety of a child is at risk, a Request for Discussion (Verzoek tot Bespreking) can be issued at the Youth Protection Table (Jeugdbeschermingstafel). The current study...Show moreWhen the development or safety of a child is at risk, a Request for Discussion (Verzoek tot Bespreking) can be issued at the Youth Protection Table (Jeugdbeschermingstafel). The current study examined the relation between the occurrence of domestic violence in a family and the decision to request a child protection investigation. Additionally, the moderating role of age and sex of a child is examined. This was investigated by anonymously coding the Request for Discussions files from various Youth Protection Tables throughout The Netherlands. Age, sex, and the decision whether to investigate was directly coded from the files. The occurrence of domestic violence was coded by ten coders, who followed an elaborative training (κ sex = .939 range = .856-1.00; κ domestic violence = .352 range = .211- 1.00). A total of 40 files were coded and analysed. The results show no relationship between domestic violence and the decision to investigate by CPS. Furthermore, no moderating role for age or sex of the child was found. Explanations for these results are possible under- or overreporting of domestic violence, the small sample size and awareness of employees on their stereotypes. Limitations and implications are discussed. Future research should focus on repeating the current study with a bigger sample size and establishing a format of the Request for Discussion that contains all essential information, which can then be implemented throughout the Netherlands.Show less
Microsoft Immersive Reader is a software program that allows you to customize documents in order to make them more comfortable and easy for you to read. The possibility to adapt reading material is...Show moreMicrosoft Immersive Reader is a software program that allows you to customize documents in order to make them more comfortable and easy for you to read. The possibility to adapt reading material is what makes it interesting, especially for readers who suffer from different types of reading disabilities. High school students who are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder experience a variety of difficulties when reading, which can hinder their study progress. As of yet, there are no means available that can support them in their reading exercises apart from personal guidance by a teacher, parent or caretaker. Therefore, the purpose of this overview study is to analyze the theoretical and empirical research that is behind the design principles of Immersive Reader in order to find the possibilities and limits of this software for high school students with autism spectrum disorder. The main question is: to what extend can Microsoft Immersive Reader serve as an Assistive Technology for high school students with autism? The researcher has conducted a literature review as well as an interview with a special education teacher with the intention of creating a theoretical overview of the reading profiles of students with autism and the possibilities and limits of Immersive Reader. According to the literature, most of the design principles of Immersive Reader are effective tools in improving different kinds of reading processes. Some of the design principles potentially compensate the deficits that cause the reading problems of students with autism. This leads to the conclusion that Immersive Reader can function as Assistive Technology for this target group, because its design principles can resolve or reduce some of the reading difficulties, which might lead to improvements in their reading skills. However, the effectivity of the software depends on how and whether it will be incorporated in their homework routines.Show less
Er is al jarenlang sprake van een dalende trend in leesvaardigheid van kinderen in het basisonderwijs in Nederland. Digitale prentenboeken hebben een positief effect op de taalontwikkeling van...Show moreEr is al jarenlang sprake van een dalende trend in leesvaardigheid van kinderen in het basisonderwijs in Nederland. Digitale prentenboeken hebben een positief effect op de taalontwikkeling van kinderen. In deze studie is onderzoek gedaan naar de houding van de leerkracht ten aanzien van digitaal voorlezen en factoren op school-, groeps- en leerkrachtniveau die hiermee samenhangen. De data zijn verkregen bij leerkrachten die werkzaam zijn op scholen die abonnementhouder zijn op Bereslim (N = 25). Bereslim is een platform dat digitale prentenboeken voor kinderen aanbiedt. Aan de leerkrachten is gevraagd een vragenlijst in te vullen. Uit de resultaten bleek dat leerkrachten over het algemeen een zeer positieve houding hebben ten aanzien van digitaal voorlezen. In dit onderzoek is geen samenhang gevonden tussen hoe belangrijk een leerkracht digitaal voorlezen vindt en de opvattingen van het schoolbestuur en de intern begeleider hierover. Ook is er geen verband gevonden tussen het taalniveau van de groep aan wie de leerkracht lesgeeft en de houding van de leerkracht ten aanzien van digitaal voorlezen. De leeftijd van de leerkracht heeft hier geen invloed op. Ondanks de bewezen positieve effecten van digitale prentenboeken op de taalontwikkeling van kinderen worden digitale prentenboeken in de lespraktijk nog niet veel ingezet. De aanbeveling is dan ook om leerkrachten meer bekend te maken met het bestaan van digitale prentenboeken en de wijze waarop deze effectief in de lespraktijk ingezet kunnen worden. Eventueel vervolgonderzoek zou zich kunnen richten op hoe leerkrachten digitale prentenboeken op een effectieve manier kunnen inzetten.Show less
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong neurological condition that profoundly impacts individuals throughout their lives. In special secondary education, autistic youth frequently receive...Show moreAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong neurological condition that profoundly impacts individuals throughout their lives. In special secondary education, autistic youth frequently receive inaccurate post-secondary destinations due to a deficit of knowledge and guidelines for assessing factors like intelligence and executive functioning within a developmental framework. This study aimed to explore the role of intelligence and executive functioning in determining the post-secondary destinations of autistic students in special secondary education. Gaining insight into the factor determining the transition outcomes of autistic students is crucial, as these outcomes significantly impact their future career prospects and further education. Consequently, this study could help prevent the negative consequences such as over- and underload and societal disengagement. Data were obtained by analysing developmental perspective files, with a total of 14 participants (93% male) aged 12-18 years included in the study. The findings suggest that autistic students with higher levels of intelligence are more inclined to pursue further education. Conversely, those with higher levels of executive functioning tend to have a lower likelihood of transitioning to further education and tend to gravitate towards employment. Furthermore, executive functioning was found to moderate the relationship between intelligence and the post-secondary destination. When executive functioning is low, there is a stronger correlation between intelligence and post-secondary destination. A lower level of intelligence implies employment, while a higher level of intelligence implies higher education. However, higher levels of executive functioning weaken the association between intelligence and post-secondary destination.In such cases, both high and low levels of intelligence may lead to employment for the students. The implications and alternative explanations for these findings are discussed, as well as suggestions for future research.Show less
A quarter of students is not able to read reasonably well at the end of elementary school. The number of students that voluntarily read in their spare time is also decreasing. However, reading is...Show moreA quarter of students is not able to read reasonably well at the end of elementary school. The number of students that voluntarily read in their spare time is also decreasing. However, reading is an important presentation mode in order to understand information. The ability to process information is important in order to function in society. The purpose of this thesis is to research which factors influence story comprehension. The effect of presentation mode, child-specific-factors and reading skills on the ability to understand information was investigated. For instance, the influence of a reading comprehension-test and the class-level on the comprehension scores for each presentation mode was examined. Furthermore, the effect of the level of intrinsic reading-motivation and the frequency of reading in spare time on the scores of comprehension for reading was investigated. An experiment was carried out in which 82 students from grade 4, 5 and 6 answered comprehension questions about three stories that they have read, listened to and viewed. The participants also filled in questionnaires about reading, listening and viewing frequency and about intrinsic motivation. The analysis of the results showed that scores for comprehension differed between text and video, but not between audio and the other presentation modes. The highest scores are reached by viewing a story. The results showed also that the effect of presentation mode on the level of story comprehension is not different for various reading comprehension-test scores and class-levels. Eventually, only a small part of the comprehension score can be explained by intrinsic reading-motivation and the amount of reading in spare time. Intrinsic reading-motivation is the best explainer for this relationship. Implications for theory and practice were also discussed. Follow-up research could for example focus on different aspects of story comprehension, like retelling a story or predicting how a story will continue.Show less
In the latest version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, selective mutism is classified as an anxiety disorder. Literature has shown that there is a strong overlap...Show moreIn the latest version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, selective mutism is classified as an anxiety disorder. Literature has shown that there is a strong overlap between social anxiety and selective mutism. Social anxiety is known to be related to a lower quality of life. A lower quality of life is associated with stress and depression and an increased risk of medical problems. This study aims to gain a clearer picture of what is more important in an adolescent's quality of life: selective mutism, social anxiety, or low speech behaviour. 79 adolescents aged from 10 to 18 and one of their parents completed various questionnaires. Adolescents completed subscale C of the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Disorders (SCARED) and the domain psychological well-being of the Kidscreen-52. Parents completed the Selective Mutism Questionnaire (SMQ) and a short questionnaire that showed whether or not an adolescent has selective mutism. Significantly less speaking behavior has been reported in adolescents with selective mutism than without selective mutism (t(78) = -12.28, p<.001). In addition, significantly more social anxiety was found in adolescents with selective mutism than in adolescents without (t(78) = 9.19, p < .001). A significantly lower quality of life was found in adolescents with selective mutism than in adolescents without selective mutism (t(78) = -2.71, p = .010). The association between speaking behavior and social anxiety turned out to be significant (r = -.77, p<.001), the association between social anxiety and quality of life aswell (r = -.33, p<.001) and the association between speaking behavior and quality of life was also significant (r = .30, p = .01). The variables have been shown to be related to each other but not to have a significantly unique contribution to the quality of life of adolescents. Selective mutism as well as social anxiety and a low level of speaking behavior lead to a lower quality of life. More research is needed to further expand the picture of selective mutism and quality of life.Show less
Background: Emotion recognition is essential for social functioning and communication. Research has shown that when adolescents with conduct disorder (CD) also show high callous-unemotional traits ...Show moreBackground: Emotion recognition is essential for social functioning and communication. Research has shown that when adolescents with conduct disorder (CD) also show high callous-unemotional traits (CU+), they are slower in recognizing negative emotions. Moreover, adolescents with CD/CU+ are limited in affective empathy and they are less fearful of punishment. On the other hand, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with a lesser ability to recognize emotions of others in an accurate manner. Besides that, in contrast to CD/CU+, they are impaired in the cognitive aspects of empathy. Aim: This study aims to gain knowledge regarding emotion recognition of adolescents, diagnosed with either ASD or CD/CU+. Specifically, this study focuses on the speed and accuracy negative emotions are recognized with. Additionally, the relationship between diagnostics and emotional processing is researched, and whether cognitive or affective empathy moderate this relationship. The latter aspect has not been studied yet in current literature. Method: The sample consisted of 48 boys between 15 and 19 years (M = 17.2), either boys with ASD (N = 23) or boys with CD/CU+ (N = 25). Using a socio-emotional computer task, fearful and angry faces were presented, and participants were requested to recognize the emotional state. Results: In contrast to earlier findings, results showed that emotion recognition accuracy did not differ between boys with CD/CU+ and boys with ASD. However, there was a difference found in reaction time: boys with CD/CU+ showed a faster reaction time to angry faces than boys with ASD. Finally, empathy did not moderate the relationship between diagnostics and emotion recognition. Conclusion: It can be concluded that boys with CD/CU+ and ASD recognize angry emotions differently. Although further research is recommended, this study emphasizes the importance of adjusting interventions to specific abilities and impairments of the individual, which can increase the efficacy.Show less
Children with a developmental language disorder (DLD) have a higher chance to be underestimated by their teachers through static and traditional tests at primary school. Present study investigates...Show moreChildren with a developmental language disorder (DLD) have a higher chance to be underestimated by their teachers through static and traditional tests at primary school. Present study investigates whether an abbreviated dynamic test would be a viable instrument to help teachers measure the instructional needs for children with a DLD. Pupils who participated (N = 66, M = 9.5 years, SD = 0.53) took an abbreviated dynamic test consisting of a 12-item analogy task. A hierarchical graduated prompt training (metacognitive, cognitive or modelling) was given to a student whom answered incorrectly. In addition, the teachers were given a questionnaire consisting of questions about pupil’s language development and current school results. First, the relationship between language development, teachers rating of instructional needs and school results was measured. A positive and significant relation was found in which children with a higher language development needed less instructions and had higher school results. Second, the relationship between language development and instructional needs on the abbreviated dynamic test were measured. It was found that children with a slower language development needed more and different kinds of graduated prompts during the dynamic test, showing a different need for instruction. Lastly the predictive value of the abbreviated dynamic test in combination with language development was measured. The abbreviated dynamic test in combination with language development is found to be a significant and strong predictor for math scores on Cito. In conclusion, it is possible to use an abbreviated dynamic test with standardized graduated prompts to measure the instructional needs of children with a language development disorder.Show less
There is little scientific research on the intergenerational transmission of trauma from parents to their offspring in violent households. There is also little knowledge about the importance of the...Show moreThere is little scientific research on the intergenerational transmission of trauma from parents to their offspring in violent households. There is also little knowledge about the importance of the gender of both the parents and the children in intergenerational trauma. It is important to find out more about influential factors on intergenerational trauma to be able to shape trauma treatment. This study aimed to investigate whether there is an association between the trauma symptoms of the parents and the trauma symptoms of their child. Further, there is investigated whether the gender of the child and the gender of the parents have a significant effect on intergenerational transmission of trauma. The sample consisted of 800 families with information about at least one parent (167 fathers and 633 mothers) and one child (397 boys and 403 girls). The parents’ age ranged from 18 to 55 years old (M= 3.90; SD= .81). The children were between 1 and 18 years old (M= 7.46; SD= 3.56). The following questionnaires were used: The trauma Symptoms Inventory (TSI), Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children (TSCYC), and the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC). Results showed that the trauma symptoms of parents were a good predictor of the child’s trauma symptoms. Both the gender of the child and the gender of parents did not affect the intergenerational transmission of trauma symptoms from parents to their child. The results of the present study show that secondary trauma symptoms are a factor to consider in the treatment of trauma symptoms. More scientific research is needed to confirm the results of this study. Follow-up research must also focus on other influential factors, such as culture, resilience, and parenting style.Show less
