School Consultation Research: Methodological Critique and Future Research Directions

Abstract

This article reviews the current status of school consultation research and critiques the research methodologies used in consultation research. Major theoretical models in which consultation research has been conducted are briefly described to provide a framework for evaluating research findings. Consultation research was reviewed in three primary areas of investigation: (a) outcome research, (b) process research, and (c) practitioner utilization research. The current state-of-the art of consultation research was characterized as devoid of a strong theoretical base; limited in scope and univariate, nonexperimental, and unsophisticated in research design and statistical treatment of data. Future research directions were specified, particularly in the areas of ecological behavior analysis, assessment of treatment integrity, and consideration of the environmental context of interventions and its effects upon target and collateral behaviors.