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Abstract. Ecological systems theory (EST) has been suggested as a framework to provide effective school psychology services, but previous reviews of research found questionable consistency between methods and the principles of EST. The current article reviewed 349 articles published in School Psychology Review (SPR) between 2006 and 2015 and compared the methods with five criteria for consistency with EST. A large majority of the studies (87.0%) published in SPR assessed the dependent variable in a manner that represented an authentic environment, and 72.6% considered the individual. Only 37.4% considered the environmental context of the intervention, 33.2% considered multiple environments, and 46.1% examined the processes with which individuals interacted with their environment. Although the final three criteria were infrequently met, there were upward trends in the data for each. Implications for practice and research are included.
Bronfenbrenner (1977) famously stated that developmental psychology is often "the science of the strange behavior of children in strange situations with strange adults for the briefest possible periods of time" (p. 513). That warning was issued around the same time that Reynolds (1975) observed, "In today's context the measurement technologies ought to become integral parts of instruction designed to make a difference in the lives of children and not just a prediction about their lives" (p. 15). Assessment is both a fundamental component of school psychology (Ysseldyke et al., 2006) and a source of its greatest controversy (Batsche, Kavale, & Kovaleski, 2006; Reynolds & Shaywitz, 2009; Ysseldyke & Reschly, 2014). Both of the seminal summative statements about psychology made by Bronfenbrenner (1977) and Reynolds (1975) were directed explicitly at assessment, with Bronfenbrenner targeting research and Reynolds cautioning practice.
Assessments used in school psychology suggest the potential for concern regarding the cautions of Bronfenbrenner (1977) and Reynolds (1975). A national survey conducted in 2002 found that school psychologists administered an average of 14.7 IQ tests, 15.2 projective tests, and 9.8 visual-motor tests each month (Hosp & Reschly, 2002). A 2010 survey did not inquire about specific assessments used, but the mean number of annual initial evaluations and reevaluations to identify a disability was 60.6 (Curtis, Castillo, & Gelley, 2012) and most evaluation batteries relied on IQ-achievement discrepancies. The assessments listed in the aforementioned surveys had questionable functional utility (Fletcher, Coulter,...