SOCIAL COMPETENCE AS A MULTIFACETED CONSTRUCT - HOW DO STUDENTS WITH LEARNING-DISABILITIES FARE

This article summarizes and extends the findings from a prospective, l ongitudinal study that examined the social competence of students with learning disabilities (LD) from kindergarten through fifth grade. Fou r components that represent a model of social competence were measured : peer relations, social cognition, behavior problems, and social skil ls. Findings revealed that over time youngsters with LD demonstrated t he same trends on all aspects of social competence as nonLD students. Students with LD did not differ significantly from low-achieving (LA) nonLD students on any of the measures of social competence; however, t hey were significantly different from average/high-achieving (AHA) non LD students on social skills and behavior problems, but not peer accep tance or self-concept. The discussion addresses the social competence of students with LD from a developmental perspective as well as how th ey contrast with other achievement groups (LA and AHA). Issues and sug gestions for future directions for research on the social-emotional de velopment of youngsters with LD are presented.