The present volume has been prepared during the International Year of the Child. Designation of a special year devoted to children underscores the widespread recognition of the importance of scientific advances and humane concern over the welfare of children. Clinical child psychology, the topic of the present serial publication, is especially important in recognition of the year of the child. Clinical child psychology at once combines areas of basic and applied research. The subject matter is concerned with understanding the nature of child development and the many influences upon which such development depends. Moreover, the clinical orientation emphasizes the extension of this research to top ics that directly affect the welfare of children and adolescents. Advances in Clinical Child Psychology publishes scholarly reviews and evaluations of many different areas of research and application. In the current volume, the third in the series, a variety of topics are addressed. These include the development of social behavior, the emergence and modification of sex-typed behavior, family systems, self-help proce dures to train parents, assessment of intelligence, childhood obesity, the development and treatment of asthma, pediatric psychology, treatment of severely disturbed children, language development, and education of disadvantaged elementary school students.

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1 Promoting Social Development: Developmental Implications for Treatment.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Selection of Target Behaviors.- 3. Traditional Behavioral Techniques.- 4. Innovative Techniques.- 5. Conclusion.- 6. References.- 2 Sex-Role Socialization: A Field in Transition.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Sex Roles in North American Society.- 3. Correlates of Sex Typing.- 4. Measurement of Sex Roles in Young Children.- 5. How Sex Roles Are Learned: Influences on Sex Typing and Sex-Role Acquisition.- 6. Modification of Sex-Role Behavior in Applied Settings.- 7. Some Clinical Issues.- 8. Conclusion.- 9. References.- 3 Deviant Family Systems.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Systems.- 3. Assessment.- 4. Parent/Child Training.- 5. Family Communications.- 6. Marital Relationships.- 7. Summary.- 8. References.- 4 Self-Help Behavior Therapies in Parent Training.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Review of Experimental Studies.- 3. Important Parameters.- 4. Conclusions.- 5. References.- 5 Issues in Psychological Assessment: Interpreting the WISC-R Intelligently.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Implications of WISC-R Research for Interpretation.- 3. Application of Theory to WISC-R Profiles.- 4. Processing Models and the Assessment of Minorities.- 5. References.- 6 Obesity among Children and Adolescents: The Problem Belongs to Everyone.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Prevalence of Obesity among Young Persons.- 3. Juvenile Obesity Tends to Persist.- 4. Obesity and Health.- 5. Response to Treatment Programs.- 6. The Hypercellularity Hypothesis.- 7. Treating Obesity: Some Promising Directions.- 8. The Problem Belongs to Everyone.- 9. References.- 7 The Treatment of Psychosomatic Disorders: Bronchial Asthma in Children.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Psychological Aspects of Asthma.- 3. Behavior Therapy and Asthma.- 4. Evaluation and Conclusions.- 5. References.- 8 Pediatric Psychology: An Appraisal.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Experimental Validation.- 3. Feasibility.- 4. Current Status of Validation and Feasibility Efforts.- 5. Future Directions.- 6. Concluding Remarks.- 7. References.- 8. Selected Bibliography.- 9 Institutional Treatment of Severely Disturbed Children: Fact, Possibility, or Nonsequitur?.- 1. Introduction.- 2. History of Institutional Care.- 3. Legal Aspects of Institutional Care.- 4. Treatment Approaches.- 5. Conclusion.- 6. Commentary.- 7. References.- 10 Pragmatics and Language Development.- 1. Introduction: History.- 2. Current Status: Pragmatics.- 3. Implications for the Clinician.- 4. References.- 11 Direct Instruction: An Effective Approach to Educational Intervention with the Disadvantaged and Low Performers.- 1. Introduction.- 2. The Direct Instruction Model in Project Follow Through.- 3. Implications of Project Follow Through.- 4. A Closer Look at the Direct Instruction Model.- 5. Other Major Features of the Model.- 6. Other Applications and Programs.- 7. Summary.- 8. References.