nature of the consultation field in the United States, the status of consultation in Canada remains less clear. In reviewing the Canadian literature on consultation, ...
Consultation in Canada Ingrid E. Sladeczek and Nancy Lee Heath McGill
University
In the United States there has been an increasing focus on consultation as an indirect service delivery model that is cost effective and preventive. Despite the substantive nature of the consultation field in the United States, the status of consultation in Canada remains less clear. In reviewing the Canadian literature on consultation, it became apparent that the conceptualization of consultation is varied. In order to obtain clarification, a systematic evaluation of the consultation literature in Canada was initiated. The present review describes consultation in Canada from its origin in 1960 to the present. Canadian journals relevant to the education field were examined and articles extracted that dealt with school consultation. This resulted in a sample of 24 articles drawn from 12 Canadianjournals. Chronological trends and themes are noted and it is concluded that school consultation in Canada differs from that in the United States, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Although less empirical research has been conducted on school consultation in Canada than in the United States, the Canadian literature on school consultation is characterized by a multitude of types of
consultation. Pendant les dernières années, les États Unis ont connu une augmentation de l’intérêt sur la consultation comme modèle de service indirect qui est rentable et préventif. Malgré le fait que le domaine de consultation est bien étudié et beaucoup utilisé aux États Unis, l’état de la consultation au Canada est moins bien compris. Dans une analyse de la littérature sur la consultation au Canada, les auteurs se sont aperçus que la représentation de ce domaine est bien variée. Pour obtenir une meilleure compréhension de ce sujet, une évaluation systématique de la consultation au Canada a été entreprise. Le but de cet article est de décrire le domaine de la consultation au Canada depuis ses origines en 1960 jusqu’à maintenant. Les auteurs ont consulté les revues canadiennes qui sont reliées au domaine de l’éducation et seulement les articles portant sur la consultation dans les écoles ont étés inclus. Cette approche a donné un échantillon de 24 articles tirés de 12 revues canadiennes. Des tendances et des thèmes chronologiques ont été relevés et les auteurs ont conclu que la consultation dans les écoles au Canada differe de celle aux États Unis, autant sur le plan qualitatif que quantitatif. Malgré le fait qu’il y a moins de littérature sur la consultation dans les écoles au Canada qu’aux États Unis, la littératute canadienne démontre une compréhension de la consultation plus variée et plus flexible.
Consultation in Canada School
psychologists, school counsellors, special education teachers and other special needs service providers working in the schools are faced with increasing
diagnostic, assessment, and intervention services while simultaneously undergoing budgetary cutbacks (Bartell, 1995; Carney, 1996;
demands for
Address all
correspondence concerning this article to Ingrid E. Sladeezek, McGill University, Department of Educational & Counselling Psychology, 3700 McTavish Street, Montreal, Quebec H3A 1Y2. This research was supported in part by a McGill Social Sciences and Humanities Research grant to the first and second authors respectively.
2
Cole, 1996; McKay, 1995). Increasing budgetary constraints have resulted in
a
recognition of the need to move towards a more cost effective model of service delivery in the field of school psychology (e.g., Cole, 1996; Janzen, Paterson, & Paterson, 1993). Specifically, in the United States there has been a heightened focus on indirect service delivery as being cost effective, time efficient, preventive, and available to more children and teachers than the direct service model (e.g., Parsons & Meyers, 1984; Zins, Kratochwill, & Elliott, 1993). Traditionally, direct delivery systems have been the venue for providing services for children with special needs. Direct delivery systems are distinguished from indirect delivery systems in that the former provides services on a one-to-one basis. A school psychologist who provides individual therapy for a child with conduct problems is one example, other direct delivery systems include: (a) special classes; (b) resource rooms; (c) crisis intervention; (d) itinerant teachers; (e) academic tutoring; (f) homebound instruction; and (g) psychiatric consultation (Dworet & Rathgeber, 1996). In contrast, indirect services include in-service training, consultation with parents, teachers, or other educators, in-school teams, parent training, and curriculum advisement &
(e.g., Cole & Brown, 1996; Elliott & Witt, 1986; Wiener
Davidson, 1990).
as an indirect method of service delivery has in the United States. Not only is consultation attention widespread characterized by its indirect service delivery system, but also by its focus on the
In the last 40 years, consultation,
received
importance of enhancing the consultees’ (e.g., teacher, parent) problem-solving skills within a triadic relationship (e.g., consultant-consultee-child) to bring about positive changes in a third party (Kratochwill, Elliott, & Canington-Rotto, 1995). A large body of empirical evidence from the United States documents and attests to the effectiveness of consultation in helping children with special needs (see for example, Alpert & Yammer, 1983; Bergan, 1993; Bergan & Kratochwill, 1990; Gibson & Chard, 1994; Gutkin & Curtis, 1990; Mannino & Shore, 1975; Medway, 1979, 1982; Medway & Updyke, 1985). More specifically, research has shown consultation to be effective in enhancing social initiation behaviours across home and school settings (Sheridan, Kratochwill, & Elliott, 1990); improving school performance in underachieving students (Galloway & Sheridan, 1994); in successfully treating irrational fears and childhood phobias (Sheridan & Colton, 1994); in decreasing children’s noncompliance and increasing parent’s child management skills (e.g., Carrington-Rotto & Kratochwill, 1994); in decreasing disruptive behaviour of children (e.g., Dunson, Hughes, & Jackson, 1994; Robertson, 1996; Sladeczek, 1996); and in managing behavioural excesses of children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (Johnson & Tilly, 1993). Since 1967, over 100 books have been written on consultation (Zins,
3
Kratochwill, & Elliott, 1993) and two journals exist which specifically focus
on
articles relevant to human service consultation (i.e., Consultation: An International Journal and Consulting Psychology Journal). In addition, with the launching in 1990 of the Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation, consultation
solidified its status as a field with its own theoretical base, research, and practice.
Despite the
of the consultation field in the United States, the status of consultation in Canada remains unclear. In an initial perusal of the Canadian literature in the area of consultation it became apparent that there existed a
substantive
less established
nature
conceptualization of consultation
in Canada.
Contrary to the
development of consultation in the United States, conceptualizations of consultation and apparent interest in consultation varied extensively across time
periods documented an unusual dearth of literature on consultation whereas other periods were marked by a notable increase of literature in the field. Similarly, in contrast to the American consultation field which centred around school psychology, the Canadian consultation literature emerged in school counselling journals and special education journals, in addition to the expected school psychology journals. In light of this unexpected diversity, the authors undertook to conduct a systematic evaluation of the field of consultation as
well
as
disciplines.
Certain time
in Canada. Thus, the purpose of the present review is to describe and examine models of consultation discussed in Canada from 1960 to 1997.
An extensive literature search was conducted
on
consultation in Canada. The
search included the following journals: Canadian Journal ofschool Psychology,
Canadian Psychology, Canadian Psychological Review, Canadian Psychologist, Canadian Journal
of Counselling, Canadian Counsellor, Exceptional Children, Canadian Journal of Education,
Canadian
Journal for
Canadian Journal
of
Behavioural Science, Canadian Education and Research Digest, The Alberta Journal of Educational Research, and School Guidance Worker. The search
the period from 1960 to 1997. Only in the 1960’s did the term &dquo;consultation&dquo; emerge (Caplan, 1963), therefore serving as a logical starting point for a review of the field. Furthermore, the chronological organization of the articles was based on the observation that change in the consultation literature appeared
spanned
non-linear, and a chronological framework would facilitate a better depiction of the nature of that change. The number of articles on consultation in the 1960’s, 1970’s, 1980’s, and 1990’s were 1, 10, 2, and 11, respectively.
4
Consultation in
Cartada fram
1960 to 1997 ’
Tlte 1960:y During the 1960’s &dquo;mental health consultation&dquo; as initially proposed by Caplan (1963) was discussed as an alternative method for delivering services in Canada’s schools (e.g. Halpem, 1964). Mental health consultation, as described by Caplan, involved the interaction between a consultant (a specialist or recognized &dquo;expert&dquo;) and a consultee (a professional) who was seeking assistance with a client. An essential aspect of Caplan’s description of the consultative process is that the consultee can accept or reject the advice given by the consultant and furthermore, that the consultee accepts the professional responsibility for the client. Interesting, as well, is the notion that the consultant not only engages in this process in order to assist the consultee, but also to gain a better understanding of diagnostic, assessment, and treatment issues that are relevant to the consultee, and thus is able to offer assistance when similar problems are encountered in the future. Notable here is that the consultant-consultee relationship is still seen as hierarchical, with the consultant
as
expert, however, the consultant is viewed
essential information and
knowledge
from the
as
obtaining
consultee, thus making the
relationship mutually beneficial. Caplan differentiated between four central types of mental health consultation: (a) Client-Centred Case Consultation; (b) Program-Centred Administrative Consultation; (c) Consultee-Centred Case Consultation; and, finally, (d) ConsulteeCentred Administrative Consultation. In Client-Centred Case Consultation the primary to
goal is to help the consultee
bring about desired changes with the client of concern, a specific individual. In
contrast, in Program-Centred Administrative Consultation the emphasis is at the group level with the consultant working with a group of consultees, to assist with the administration of prevention, treatment, or rehabilitation of individuals who evidence mental problems. Consultee-Centred Case Consultation, while similar
Client-Centred Case Consultation in its focus on a single individual, is unique the change expected occurs in the consultee, not the client. With ConsulteeCentred Case Consultation, the consultant is brought in to work with the consultee directly to address a lack of understanding with reference to the client’s problems, to enhance the consultee’s skills, to assist the consultee with themes that interfere to
as
with his/her ability
to
work with
a
particular client or situation, and to support the
consultee and aid in building confidence and self esteem in the consultee. ConsulteeCentred Administrative
Consultation,
as
the title suggests, spotlights more assisting the consultee to manage
with the consultant
administrative level change, program goals and to deal effectively with collegial interpersonal issues.
5
Halpern (1964)
advocated the
use
of mental health consultation for school
psychologists in Canada, and although, she describes mental health consultation in broad terms, it is clear from her discourse that her proposal focused on consulteecentred case consultation, with particular reference to consultation with teachers
bring about changes
viewed
consultative model as a method to increase the effectiveness of school psychologists in communicating and integrating information in a way that was useful to educators and as a means
to
with
a
child.
Halpern
a
to enhance the implementation of recommendations by teachers. Further,
the usefulness of
consultative model in
the
Halpern &dquo;manpower
highlights addressing problem&dquo; ~p. 1 50) and views consultation as a method whereby children may be provided with services in a more efficient manner. Thus, even in the 1960’s, the notion that psychologists would be able to meet the demands of applied settings was deemed unrealistic by professionals (Bernhardt, 1961 as cited by Halpern, 1964). It could be argued that Halpern (1964) was a pioneer in highlighting the use
a
of consultation in the Canadian context.
The 1970’s A surge of interest in the potential of consultation as an alternative delivery system was
evident in the school counsellor literature in the 1970’s. viewed as a viable method for the delivery of services to secondary, college, and university communities (e.g., Axford, 1977;
particularly
Consultation
elementary,
was
Brosseau, 1973; Carr, 1976; Merchant, 1976; Simons & Davies, 1973; Waxer, 1972; Waxer & White, 1973; Young & Borgen, 1979). Brosseau (1973) noted that the foci of consultation activities were diverse and marked by a lack of definitional
clarity. However, certain commonalities existed in the consultation literature at this time. Consultation was viewed as developmental and preventive in nature, and as a preferred alternative to treatment. In addition, teachers were viewed as the major agents of change, and although the consultative relationship was viewed mutually beneficial, the consultant was clearly seen in an &dquo;expert&dquo; role. Importantly, consultation was viewed as a mechanism to impart skills to teachers so that they would not only be able to effectively deal with a particular child’s problem behaviour, but to be able to address similar problems such as these in the as
future. As
problems
consequence, counsellors would be free (Simons & Davies, 1973). a
to
attend to
more severe
As the decade progressed a new framework for consultation arose (Axford,
1977). During the mid-to-late 1970’s &dquo;developmental consultation&dquo; emerged as an approach that involved the entire system or environment of the child. Merchant (1976) discusses developmental consultation as a more holistic
6
approach tor understanding a child’s tunctioning. its approach requires that the consultant engage the individuals who play a pivotal role in the child’s life (e.g., sibling, parent, teacher) throughout the consultative endeavour. Thus, for the first
time, with the advent of developmental consultation, the tremendous influence of the
family on children’s development was recognized as vital to the consultative process (Axford, 1977). TI1 e 1980’s
Theory, research,
and
practice in consultation
decelerated in the 1980’s. Until this
time, there had been a flurry of discussion on consultation in the schools, although a
systematic analysis of the efficacy of consultation had not been undertaken. Carr (1981) provides compelling explanations for this state of affairs, namely, conceptual problems, little research activity in the field, limited numbers of consultants and lack of available training in consultation. Further, Carr (1981) argued that the grip of the medical model on education was another reason why consultation floundered in Canada. Typically, strict adherents to the &dquo;medical model&dquo; view abnormal behaviour emanating from &dquo;within&dquo; the child, therefore, the course of treatment is to &dquo;do&dquo; something to the child. The adherence to the medical model was puzzling in light of Jevne’s (1981) finding that school consultants prefer a developmental, holistic as
orientation to problem solving and with reference to information suggesting that the medical model
was
&dquo;... the
most
costly,
least efficient, and
most
likely
ineffective
system for implementing principles of developmental growth...&dquo; (Carr, 1981, p. 85). In closing, the decade of the 1980s was singularly inactive in the field of consultation in Canada. Reasons for this stagnation have been tentatively suggested but no definitive
explanation is revealed. The 1990’s This decade marks a period of considerable growth for consultation theory, research, and practice in Canada. Notable is the publication of the comprehensive book Elective Consultation in School
Psychology
edited
by
Cole and
Siegel (1990).
Prominent
Canadian scholars address the following critical issues: the expanding future role of school
Cole, 1990); the process of school consultation (Davison, 1990); responding (Miezitis & Scholten, 1990); parentteacher mediated intervention (Cole, 1990); assessment and intervention with underachieving adolescents (Zarb, 1990); dynamic assessment in the classroom (Bountrogianni & Pratt, 1990); and integration of consultation in the delivery of school psychological services (Anserello & Sweet, 1990). The stated purpose of the book is
psychologists (Siegel
&
to teachers’ needs
provide school psychologists (Cole & Siegel, 1990).
to
with
a
blueprint for conducting consultation
7
Siegel and Cole (1990) stress the importance of &dquo;collaborative consultation.&dquo; Collaborative consultation can be distinguished from mental health consultation in that the former model encourages the school psychologist to relinquish his/her role as an &dquo;expert&dquo; thereby paving the way for a mutually respectful relationship between school psychologists and educators. In addition, school psychologists are encouraged to maintain an open attitude toward diverse methods of delivering services to children and youth, to develop a preventive mind set, and importantly, to match the mode of service delivery to educators’ needs. The service delivery model proposed by Siegel and Cole (1990) is innovative as it incorporates all activities of the school psychologist and thus includes both indirect and more systems-oriented services. The three pronged model of primary prevention, secondary prevention, and tertiary prevention allows for services to span the spectrum (services for all children as well as children with special needs) and the recipients of those services may include the organization, school staff, students/ parents (mediated), and students/parents (direct). Several authors describe the effective application of this model for providing services (e.g., Cole, 1990; Cole & Siegel, 1990; Miezitis & Scholten, 1990; Wiener & Davidson, 1990; Zarb, 1990). Wiener and Davidson’s
(1990) study
on
the
efficacy
of collaborative
consultation as a prereferral intervention system represents one of the few empirical studies carried out in Canada. Heretofore, the research had been limited to reports of successful individual
case
studies
or
anecdotal information
concerning
the
process of programmatic consultation. Wiener and Davidson (1990) found that collaborative consultation using resource teachers as in-house consultants coupled
with
ecological approach to assessment decreased referrals to psychologists, or special education placement by half. Ross and Regan (1990) conducted a study investigating differences between experienced and inexperienced curriculum consultants and found that experienced consultants had more knowledge concerning the effort required to bring about desired change, and had a larger repertoire of strategies available to bring about that change. In addition, the more experienced consultants arranged for individual and group sessions and provided practice sessions for an
other consultants,
teachers. Furthermore, their skill structures were more complex than that of the novice consultants, and they were sensitive to task demands and the social
system within which consultation occurred. They also involved other agents in the monitoring and implementation of objectives. Interestingly, however, Ross and Regan (1990) do
acknowledge that the nature of the system in which performance. within school systems that were highly supportive
the consultant functioned did influence the consultant’s Consultants who worked
8
demonstrated greater success than consultants in less supportive environments. Thus, Ross and Regan’s (1990) work provided additional indication of the efficacy of consultation in Canadian schools.
During this period, school
team consultation
emerged as another prominent (Cole & Brown, 1996) . Briefly, school team consultation involves the following phases: a clear depiction of the presenting problem, a detailed analysis of the problem (e.g., information from multiple informants, classroom observations, review of school records), the generation of solutions, development of intervention plans, agreement amongst team members concerning responsibilities and timelines, implementation and monitoring of treatment progress, and, conducting follow-up evaluations (Cole & Brown, 1996). In both an earlier study and a later replication (Cole, 1992; Cole & Brown, 1996; Cole, Siegel, & Yau, 1992) Cole and colleagues studied the goals, roles, and functions of school consultative teams, surveying 50% of elementary and secondary schools in an Ontario school board. At both times (Study I and 2) the goals for the school consultation teams were similar, demonstrating little change over time (e.g., understanding individual student needs and planning appropriate interventions at school and at home, providing school team consultation to school personnel and other educators, facilitating referrals for special education). Further findings included: (a) student referrals to school consultation teams increased slightly [62 in 1990, 78 in 1995] and students continued to evidence academic and social emotional needs; (b) in-class recommendations that were most frequently discussed (over 50%) included the need for more information concerning specific teaching strategies, expanded opportunities for the provision of remedial and enrichment activities, and specific consequences for conduct problems; (c) school-based recommendations that were most frequently noted (over 50%) included referral for psychological and social services, family interviews, and referral to local Identification, Placement, and Review Committees (IPRC); (d) the most frequently mentioned family-based recommendation (80% of secondary and 79% of elementary respondents) was the need for consultation with parents; and finally, (e) the most frequently endorsed community-based recommendation (over 20%) was the need for referral to other community agencies. Cole and Brown (1996) conclude that it is important to reevaluate the roles of school consultation teams as they relate vehicle for service delivery in Canadian schools
to educational
goals and programming decisions not only for individual students but for groups of students. This is consistent with Cole’s (1996) observation that in a time of increasing educational expectations and declining
resources
there is
an
educational reform towards
a new more
integrative model
9
of service (Fullan, 1991; Fullan & Miles, 1992, as cited by Cole, school consultation teams should play a central role.
1996) in which
1995, daCosta compared the effectiveness of four teacher collaboration strategies: collaborative consultation; collaborative consultation with team teaching; collaborative consultation with no classroom observation; and collegial In
consultation with no classroom observation. The four groups were found to differ and the identified essential element for this difference was deemed to be classroom observation. It was concluded that conducting classroom observations is crucial
collaborative consultation if the goal is to increase personal teaching efficacy and student achievement. Thus, the 1990s, unlike the preceding decade, have been a productive period for the field of consultation in Canada. Indeed, so much so that the present review to
cannot claim to be exhaustive. The studies herein reviewed were chosen to illustrate
this period’s distinctive claim to the initiation of the systematic investigation of the efficacy of consultation in Canadian schools. As we proceed in this decade we hope, and expect, to continue this promising trend of development.
Discussion Examination of the evolution of consultation in Canada over the past four decades suggests an initial surge of interest with the advent of Caplan’s (1963) seminal work on types of mental health consultation, followed by extensive discussion by
academics and practitioners as to how school psychologists, school counsellors, and educators could incorporate consultation activities within a delivery system that
can
be described
as
primarily direct and hierarchical. In the 1980’s, writing
and research on consultation declined, the exact reason for this is unclear. Although
published discourse declined, it is highly probable that practitioners included some type of consultation in their day to day functioning. Of course, the notion of consulting with teachers and parents was not an entirely novel idea, however, the conceptualization of the consultee and consultant roles with prescribed procedures for bringing about change was original. Momentum increased as consultation theory, research, and practice approached the 1990’s. Professional organizations (e.g., National Association of School Psychologists) stressed the importance of formalized training in consultation for school psychologists and this tenet was mirrored
by researchers active
in Canadian schools. Established Canadian
clearly state the necessity of consultation psychologists as a part of a comprehensive service delivery system (e.g., Carney, 1996; Cole, 1996; Janzen, Paterson, & Paterson, 1993; Siegel & Cole, 1990). Significant here is the belief that consultation is an integral component of a delivery service school
and educators
10
system, and not viewed as a second best alternative. In this vein, Siegel and Cole
(1990) developed an effective consultation model for the delivery of psychological services in schools. If one contrasts the above observations concerning the evolution of consultation in Canada to the United States several
application of
emerge. First, the Bergan’s (1977) &dquo;behavioural consultation&dquo; model, that was further
interesting findings
extended and refined by Bergan and Kratochwill (1990) has not gained a foothold in the Canadian literature. The &dquo;behavioural consultation&dquo; model has been one of
major models of consultation used in the United States. Briefly, behavioural consultation involves the collaboration between a consultant and at least one consultee (usually a parent and/or teacher) that together work towards bringing about behaviour change with a client (usually a child). Typically, four stages are involved in the consultation process: Problem Identification, Problem Analysis, Treatment Implementation, and Treatment Evaluation. During the Problem Identification Interview the consultant and consultee(s) identify the initial problem and agree upon a data collection strategy to collect baseline information (e.g., number of aggressive acts per day). During the Problem Analysis Interview baseline data is reviewed, antecedents, consequences, and sequential conditions linked the
with the problem behaviours
are identified and analysed. A treatment plan based effective behavioural management strategies is developed and plans for implementation are confirmed. Finally, after treatment implementation has on
occurred, the Treatment Evaluation Interview is held, where the data is reviewed, and the consultant, teacher, and parent discuss the effectiveness of treatment, and if treatment should be continued or terminated. In-between the Problem Analysis Interview and the Treatment Evaluation Interview the consultant and consultee
maintain contact and determine how the client is
responding to treatment, and if impressive feature of this type of consultation is that the relationship between the consultant and consultee is viewed as collaborative, and secondly, that the approach to problem identification and the monitoring of treatment is data driven. Striking is the prominence and permanence behavioural consultation has enjoyed for 20 years in the United States (Kratochwill, Bergan, Elliott, & Sheridan, in press) and revisions need to be made to the treatment plan. The most
yet behavioural consultation has failed
to appear in the Canadian school
literature. However, despite the widespread support of the behavioural consultation model in the United States, it is not without its critics.
psychology
Recently, Noell and Witt (1996) critiqued the basic assumptions of behaviouralI consultation and concluded that there was a need for a more competitive and controversial stance toward models of consultation than presently exists in the United States. Noell and Witt’s (1996) underlying premise appears to be
11
that the consultation field has been dominated by the behavioral consultation model, which in turn, has led to minimal development of alternative models of consultation. However, in Canada where the behavioural consultation model has not dominated
consultation, it could equally be argued that the field has failed to
establish itself with the same distinction as in the United States. In summary, the prominence of the behavioural consultation model observed in the United States, while open to criticism, may have served an important role in the development of consultation
as an
established field, which has not occurred in Canada at this
time. A second versus
interesting comparison
between consultation in the United States
Canada revolves around the sheer
magnitude of the published work in inquiry generated by scholars and
consultation. The amount of scientific practitioners in consultation has been tremendous in the United States. In the most recent meta-analytic investigation of consultation outcomes, 1, 643 studies were reviewed (Gibson & Chard, 1994). Gibson and Chard (1994) concluded that
efficacy of consultation interventions was considerable. A comparable metaanalysis of the Canadian literature on consultation outcomes has not been done.
the
However, our own literature search from 1960 to 1997 uncovered only 24 articles on
consultation. This
startling discrepancy may best illustrate the difference
between the state of the consultation field in Canada
versus
the United States.
Although publications may not reflect practice, it is noteworthy that few researchers
publishing on consultation development of the field. are
In
in Canada
as
this
inevitably
will lead
to
less
conclusion, it is the authors’ contention that consultation in Canadian
literature differs from the literature on consultation in the United States along two
dimensions:
qualitatively and quantitatively. The qualitative difference lies in the a single leading model of emphasis consultation which has predominated the literature and practice, whereas in Canadian journals we see a less clearly defined conceptualization of consultation. This flexibility has had significant drawbacks in that little empirical investigation of the efficacy of consultation has been published in Canada and the field could be argued to be fragmented. Nevertheless, the future development of the field in Canada has enormous potential. The quantitative difference between the Canadian of the fields. In the United States there is
and the American consultation fields refers to the amount of literature in American
their Canadian counterparts. Even allowing for proportional differences in number of existing journals and population, there remains a greater emphasis on consultation in the American research literature relative to the Canadian. Consultation in Canada is unique and differs significantly from the United States. sources versus
12
Empirical research on consultation in Canada has been largely limited to the present decade (e.g., Cole, 1990; Cole & Brown, 1996; Cole, Siegel, & Yau, 1992; daCosta, 1995; Ross & Regan, 1990; Siegel & Cole, 1990; Wiener & Davidson, 1990) and dominated by Cole and colleagues’ extensive work on the three-pronged model of collaborative consultation and school
team
consultation. This research
advantages of consultation at both the individual and systems 1996), suggesting that the viability of consultation as an alternative
demonstrates the
level
(Cole,
service delivery model is currently being recognized in Canada. Furthermore, the
acknowledgement of the importance of consultation in Canadian schools has extended into an emphasis on consultation in the training of school psychologists (e.g., Carney, 1996; Saklofske, 1996). However, future investigators need to clearly define and.operationalize what is meant by &dquo;consultation.&dquo; In addition, the actual practice of consultation in Canadian schools needs to be further examined in the following areas: the value students in training and practitioners place on consultation skills; the extent to which Canadian school psychologists engage in consultative practices in their day to day functioning; and the nature of consultative practices used in the schools. Only in this manner can we conduct meaningful empirical investigations of the efficacy of consultation in Canadian schools which is imperative for the continued growth of the field. Thus, the field of consultation in Canada has the opportunity to definitively choose its direction and this opportunity should not be ignored. References Alpert, J. L., & Yammer, M. D. (1983). Research in school consultation: A content analysis of selected journals. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 14, 604-612. Anserello, C., & Sweet, T. (1990). Integrating consultation into school psychological services. In E. Cole & J. A. Siegel (Eds.), Effective consultation in school psychology (pp 173- 199). Toronto: Hogrefe & Huber.
Axford, M. B. (1977). The elementary school counsellor-consultant and the family. School Guidance Worker, 33, 36-42. Bartell, R. (1995). Canadian association of school psychologists. Canadian Journal of School Psychology, (2)85-88. 12 Bergan, J. R. (1977). Behavioral consultation. Columbus, OH: Merrill.
Bergan, J. R. (1993). Forward. In J. Zins, T. R. Kratochwill, & S. N. Elliott (Eds.), Handbook of consultation services for children (pp. xiii-xiv). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers. Bergan, J. R., & Kratochwill, T. R. (1990). Behavioral consultation and therapy. New York: Plenum. Bergan, J. R., Sladeczek, I. E., & Schwarz, R. D. (1991). Effects of a measurement and planning system on kindergartners’ cognitive and educational programming. American Educational Research Journal, 28(3), 683-714.
Brosseau, J. (1973). Consulting - A potpourri? Canadian Counsellor, 7(4), 259-267.
Bountrogianni, M., & Pratt, M. (1990). Dynamic assessment: Implications for classroom consultation, peer tutoring and parent education. In E. Cole & J. A. Siegel (Eds.), Effective consultation in school psychology (pp. 129-140). Toronto: Hogrefe & Huber. Caplan,
G.
(1963). Types of mental health consultations. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 33, 470-481.
13
(1996). A practitioner’s view of challenges and issues for school psychologists in the 21st century. Carney, Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 12 (2), 98-102. P. J.
Carr, R. A. (1976). The effects of preventive consultation with elementary school principals on changing teacher staff meeting behaviors. Canadian Counselor, 10 (4), 157-165. Carr, R. A. (1981). A model for consultation training in Canadian counsellor education programs. Canadian
Counsellor, 15 ,83-92.
Carrington-Rotto, P., & Kratochwill, T. R. (1994). Behavioral consultation with parents: Using competencybased training to modify child noncompliance. School Psychology Review, 23, 669-693. Cole, E. (1990). Parent-teacher mediated intervention: A growth-promoting process. In E. Cole & J. A. Siegel (Eds.), Effective consultation in school psychology (pp. 101-112). Toronto: Hogrefe & Huber. Cole,E. (1992). Characteristics of students referred to school teams: Implications for preventive psychological services. Canadian Journal of School ,23-36. Psychology, 8
Cole, E. (1996). An integrative perspective on school psychology. Canadian Journal of School Psychology, (2), 115-121. 12 Cole, E., & Brown, R. (1996). Multidisciplinary school teams: A five-year follow-up study. Canadian Journal (2), 155-168. of School Psychology, 12 Cole, E. & Siegel, J. A. (1990). Effective consultation in school psychology. Toronto, Canada: Hogrefe & Huber.
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