Longitudinal Research on the Behavioral Characteristics of Children with Learning Disabilities

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Abstract
This paper summarizes a program of research on the behavioral characteristics of children with learning disabilities (LD) compared to average achievers. Longitudinal studies over a 3-year period beginning in the first and second grades showed that children with LD, as a heterogeneous group, displayed a persistent pattern of maladaptive classroom behavior that distinguished them from average achieving peers and that was associated with continued underachievement over time. Subsequently, children with LD in the longitudinal sample were clustered into seven different subtypes that represented attention problems, conduct and classroom management problems, withdrawn-dependent behavior, and normal behavior. Although no differences in achievement were found initially between behavioral subtypes, children in the attention and conduct problem subtypes had poorer academic outcomes 3 years later compared to those in the withdrawn subtype and those who had no significant behavior problems. The collective findings from this research are discussed in terms of the developmental relationship between learning disabilities, attention disorders, and social/emotional problems, and implications are drawn for a greater focus on behavioral interventions in special education and prevention efforts in the early grades.