Date of Submission

2012

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Department

Psychology

Department Chair

Robert A. DiTomasso, PhD, ABPP, Chair, Department of Psychology

First Advisor

Rosemary Mennuti, EdD, Chairperson

Second Advisor

George McCloskey, PhD

Third Advisor

Shaheen Fazelbhoy, PsyD

Abstract

In 1986, Congress enacted Public Law 99-457, Part H of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This law, currently referred to as Part C, was established in response to the growing number of children born with developmental delays. Infants born prematurely, addicted to drugs, or with conditions such as Down Syndrome face challenging lives. Part C allows for eligible infants, ages birth to three years to receive free early intervention services to address their individual delays. Previous studies have shown that children who have participated in early intervention programs have benefited in various areas of their overall development. The purpose of this study is to examine parents’ perceptions of the effects of early intervention services on adaptive functioning in toddlers who are enrolled in a center-based early intervention program. The present study utilized archival data from a random sample of children (N=75) who were enrolled in a center-based program at the Infant and Child Learning Center located in Brooklyn, New York. The majority of participants in the sample were African-American (f=93.3%) and male (f=73.3%). The children ranged in age from four to twenty-eight months prior to beginning the program, with a mean age in months of M=19.24 (SD=5.02). At postintervention, the children ranged in age from twenty-one to thirty-seven months, mean age in months M=32.12 (SD=1.99). The mean duration of enrollment in the program in months was M=11.83 (SD=2.65) and ranged from seven to eighteen months. The results of this study showed that parents did, in fact, believe that their children made improvements after attending the program.

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