Abstract
Introduction
The First Edition of the Introduction to School Psychology: Controversies and Current Practice offers a comprehensive and concise overview of legislations, theories, and controversies that are core to the practice of school psychology in the United States. The book consists of five sections on Current Practice, Professional Associations, Theoretical Foundations, Controversies That Shape Practice, and Current Context and the Future of the Field respectively, written by expert practitioners and researchers in the field of school psychology, and edited by Dr. Matthew K. Burns.
The book begins with an overview of the fundamentals of the field and then moves onto issues that will continue to determine and influence service delivery. For graduate students in school psychology progress through their training, this book is useful in guiding learning. For current school psychologists or researchers, the balanced and research-based writing of the book could help define future work and collaborations. The general theme of research and practice being intertwined in the field of school psychology is evident in each chapter and section of the book. The detailing of considerations based on theoretical foundations, medical knowledge, data-based decision-making and the interdisciplinary nature of the field highlights the importance of knowledge in all these areas to ensure comprehensive service delivery as a practitioner. The knowledge gaps highlighted in the book also emphasizes the need for more applicable research for the field to move forward. In sum, the Introduction to School Psychology: Controversies and Current Practice is an effective in encapsulating the field and directing future work for both clinicians and researchers.
Major Themes and Content
Section 1
Current Practice highlights important foundations of current practice in school psychology. The chapter “Laws, Rules, Regulations, and Ethical Standards that affect Current Practice” summarizes key ethical considerations from the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) and the American Psychological Association (APA); and legal obligations of school psychologists under relevant federal laws. The chapter also discusses how historical controversies from interactions between legal and ethical issues impacted current practice. While the chapter provides a good summary of American laws and professional associations, Canadian readers should be reminded that this chapter is not entirely applicable to the Canadian context. The chapter “Cultural Competent Practice” highlights the need for multicultural competency in American education to improve service delivery, and the implications in training, diagnosis, and intervention in research and practice. The chapter “Giving Expertise Away Through School Consultation” defines consultation in school psychology, delineates consultation from individual to district level in the educational system, and discusses the important nuances in consultation like cultural considerations and appropriate relationship-building.
Section 2
Professional Associations introduces key American associations in the field of school psychology, including APA Division 16, NASP, Society for the Study of School Psychology, Council for Exceptional Children, and International School Psychology Association. In respective chapters, contributors described the contribution of these associations in forms of publications, advocacy, providing professional development, and guiding research.
Section 3
Theoretical Foundations accentuates the relevance of theories from behavioral science, neuroscience, cognitive psychology, social psychology, and prevention science in the practice and research of school psychology. The chapter “Theory, Conceptual, Frameworks, and Practice in School Psychology” offers two scenarios where these theoretical frameworks offer useful perspectives in case conceptualization and intervention planning. The chapter “Prediction Versus Control” introduces the prominent role behavior analysis plays in school psychology given its federally mandated role in assessment using functional behavior assessment, as well as in intervention planning and decision making. The chapter on neuroscience offers a comprehensive and concise overview of relevant summaries of neuroscientific and genetic findings on development and developmental conditions. In the chapter on cognitive science, on top of defining working memory, executive functions, and types of long-term memory, it summarizes important principles of learning that forms the basis of effective instruction and interventions. The chapter on social psychology summarizes research on attitude formation, social perception, and social cognition that are relevant to the practice of school psychology. Finally, the chapter on prevention science describes the theoretical background of multitiered systems of support (MTSS) and offers relevant concrete research-based practices that align with the MTSS framework of service delivery.
Section 4
The first three sections summarize current practices in school psychology and establish knowledge foundation of the field. The next section of the book, Controversies That Shape Practice, transitions into discussing contrasting frameworks for practices in school psychology that are essential to the continued development of the field in terms of improving service delivery and propelling applicable research. The chapter “Idiographic Versus Nomothetic History” described the origin of these two opposing approaches in psychology, pioneered by Lightner Witmer and G Stanley Hall, respectively. Both norm-based and individualized approaches play important roles in assessment, consultation, and intervention in school psychology, and will continue to be a relevant consideration for future school psychologists. The next chapter on entry-level credentials is an important debate in the field with opposing arguments of satisfying service demands versus raising the reputation of the field. This debate is also based on opposing emphasis on school-related versus psychology-related training of a school psychologist. This is a useful chapter for individuals hoping to enter the field as it delineates considerations for choosing which degree to pursue, as well as how NASP and APA play a role in influencing the content and accreditation of professional training programs. The following chapter discussed the practice of school psychology in school versus alternative settings. This is applicable because school psychologists are prepared to work in multiple settings given their training in both individual- and system-level service delivery, data-based decision making, consultation, and program evaluation. This chapter is useful for readers who hope to work in multiple settings as it highlights both similarities and differences in components of service delivery between settings, which helps identify areas for supplementary training. The chapter on diagnostic system compares the psychiatric system, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5; American Psychiatric Association, 2013), medical system, the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-11, World Health Organization, 2018), and educational system based on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004). A strong understanding of the three systems is important for reducing confusion for parents, improving interdisciplinary communication, and specifying the goals of assessment. The chapter on functional versus structural analysis summarizes behavioral assessment tools that are categorized into either the measurement of what versus why of behaviors. Because both types of assessments have value in education, for example, structural analysis for progress monitoring, functional analysis for designing interventions, this chapter is a good resource for knowing what is currently used in the field. The chapter on the emotional disturbance diagnosis and social maladjustment exclusion clause argues that these categorizations are not empirically and psychologically valid and highlights their impact in causing underserving of special education populations in schools. The next chapter compared approaches for identifying learning disabilities, namely processing strengths and weaknesses and response to intervention methods. The chapter compares the reliability, validity, and utility of both approaches based on decision-making principles that are data-based, empirical, and parsimonious. The chapter on behavior and mental health interventions summarizes both therapeutic and functional approaches in complementing each other for supporting different needs. The chapter on the use of psychotropic medication includes summary tables of classes and examples of psychotropic medications and a break down of research and outcomes that argue for and against the use of psychotropic medication. Factors like cost, urgency, adherence to prescription, and doing good versus harm are detailed in the chapter that can help guide psychologists in giving case-specific recommendations. In the last chapter in this section, aptitude-by-treatment interaction research is compared with skill-by-treatment interaction research in terms of their respective applicability in assessment and intervention evaluation.
Section 5
The last section of the book, Current Context and the Future of the Field, summarizes future challenges and directions. The first two chapters of the section highlight challenges and considerations in service delivery for urban versus rural settings. The chapter on technology in school psychology describes both the power of and challenges in incorporating technology in school psychology for service delivery and supervision. There is a chapter on the Future Conferences that summarizes previous conferences and mentions goals for the upcoming Futures Conference in 2022. In the last chapter of the book, award recipients of the Lightner Witmer Award from Division 16 of the APA during the last 10 years emphasize key areas for development in both research and practice, and challenges to tackle that are essential to propel the field of school psychology forward.
Critique
The Introduction to School Psychology: Controversies and Current Practice is effective in capturing the current practices and highlighting areas for improvement in the field of school psychology. This makes the book an impactful read, especially for graduate students in school psychology and novice school psychologists. This book identifies fundamental theories and regulations that affect current practice, and controversies that continue to influence practice. Therefore, reading this book is especially helpful for those at the beginning of their career as it could help guide training and continued education to improve service delivery. For researchers, it can help guide research questions that should be prioritized for improving decision making in the field.
For school psychologists who are further along in their career, Sections 4 and 5 on current controversies and future directions would be especially relevant. The chapters in Section 4 are structured so that they summarize research findings and their impact on service in opposing or juxtaposing approaches or methods. This is useful in providing comprehensive and research-based information to help the decision-making process of psychologists for the type of method or perspective they adopt in service delivery. Key research questions pivotal to improving future practices are identified in these two sections and are also helpful for those currently conducting school psychology research.
Another strength of this book is the clear and effective structuring throughout the book. Although each chapter is written by different experts in the field, all chapters follow a similar flow of defining concepts, citing key relevant research, identifying implications for researchers and practitioners, and ending with a summarizing conclusion. This creates a coherent flow that unifies all chapters and makes the book easy to follow. This structure also makes the book accessible for readers to revisit relevant sections depending on their professional focus. Each chapter is followed by “Resources,” which helps guide extended reading and learning for readers interested in the area. “Questions for Review, Conversation, and Debate” are also useful to guide conversations for getting other experts’ opinions for extended learning and research beyond reading the book.
In sum, the Introduction to School Psychology: Controversies and Current Practice is a valuable introductory book for graduate students in school psychology to guide their training, as well as for current school psychologists in encouraging evidence-based practice and collaborations in research. By encapsulating the array of knowledge on which the field is built, and discussing important controversies in the field, this book offers detailed insights into work that needs to be conducted for better service and a stronger profession.
