Date of Award

2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Psychology (Ph.D.)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Dawn P. Flanagan

Abstract

Specific Learning Disability (SLD) is the most common classification for special education children in the United States (National Center for Education Statistics, 2018). With the high prevalence of this disorder, an increase in the use of the pattern of strengths and weaknesses (PSW) method, and the responsibility of the school psychologist to engage in competent practice, this study aimed to investigate the level of understanding school psychologists have in three of the most common PSW methods: Naglieri’s (1999) discrepancy/consistency method (DCM), Flanagan and colleagues’ (2002, 2013) dual-discrepancy consistency method (DD/C), and Hale and Fiorello’s (2004) concordance-discordance method (C-DM; Maki & Adams, 2018; National Association of School Psychologists [NASP], 2020). Seventy-three participants completed a survey that included questions about the three approaches' core elements. Results indicated that on average, participants did not demonstrate sufficient knowledge of the PSW method (e.g., C-DM, DCM, or DD/C) they reported moderate to extreme familiarity with. However, the results nonetheless demonstrated that, in general, as participants’ self-reported familiarity levels of DCM and DD/C increased, their knowledge scores improved as well. Lastly, participants indicated the highest preference for and familiarity with the DD/C method. The need for additional training in PSW methods and implications for the field of school psychology are discussed.

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