ATTRIBUTIONS FOR ACHIEVEMENT OUTCOMES AMONG BEHAVIORAL SUBGROUPS OF CHILDREN WITH LEARNING-DISABILITIES

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether different behavioral subgroups of children with learning disabilities (LD) form different beliefs regarding the causes of their achievement-related su ccesses and failures. The sample (n = 75) was composed of five careful ly matched groups of 15 children: (a) nondisabled, non-behavior-disord ered, nonreferred; (b) non-disabled; non-behavior-disordered clinic-re ferred; (c) LD, non-behavior-disordered; (d) LD exhibiting externalizi ng behaviors; and (e) LD exhibiting both externalizing and internalizi ng behaviors. Results suggest that the achievement attributions of chi ldren with LD are heterogeneous and are related to presence and type o f behavior disorder. It appears that not all children with LD develop maladaptive beliefs. Findings are discussed in terms of implications f or education and attribution retraining.