Department of Educational Psychology
Date of this Version
May 1993
Abstract
Noell and Gresham (this issue) provide a thoughtful and insightful description of Functional Outcome Analysis (FOA) as an important construct for the evaluation of consultation and prereferral interventions. Their “framework for investigating relationships between interventions, behavior change, costs, benefits, treatment integrity, treatment acceptability, and ecological validity” (p. 38) is novel, and there is a definite need for expanding our considerations of outcome in consultation research and practice. There is obvious scientific and empirical appeal to the conceptual model of FOA. In particular, it has the potential to move consultation research in a new and exciting direction. However, practically speaking, one must wonder if the information gleaned from such a potentially intrusive evaluation system is worth the costs. This article will address the perceived scientific and practical merits of FOA.
Comments
Published in School Psychology Quarterly, 8:3 (1993), pp. 227–230. Copyright © 1993 American Psychological Association. Used by permission. “This article may not exactly replicate the final version published in the APA journal. It is not the copy of record.” http://www.apa.org/journals/spq/