A study of the expository process model in mental health settings

Abstract

A number of authors have documented complaints made by consumers about psychological reports. Prominent among these complaints are that basic data are not included, that psychological terms whose meanings are not certain are used, and that the logic of the report is unclear. Ownby and Wallbrown (1986) have proposed a model for report writing that addresses these concerns by specifying the types of data and the mode of data presentation most likely to be viewed positively by readers of reports. In the present study, psychologists (N = 29) in several mental health settings rated statements based on the model as significantly more credible and persuasive than nonmodel equivalent statements.

A study of the expository process model in school psychological reports

“…Preliminary evidence drawn from an unpublished pilot study (Ownby, 1984) suggests that readers of reports rate expository-process-model-based statements as being more credible and persuasive than similar but non-expository-process-model-based statements. In addition, a study with clinical and counseling psychologists (Ownby, 1990) also supported the model.…”

“…Prominent among these complaints are that basic data are not included, that psychological terms whose meanings are not clear are used, and that the logic of the statements in reports is unclear. Ownby and Wallbrown (1986) have proposed a model for report writing that addresses these concerns by specifying the types of data and the mode of data presentation most likely to be viewed positively by readers of reports. This study tested this model by developing comparable sets of statements that might appear in a school psychological report, one set model-based and the other not.…”

“…Limitations of psychological reports have been documented in a number of studies. Consumers of reports frequently indicate that reports don't contain enough basic data, that they contain jargon, and that they are unclear or imprecise (Berry, 1975;Ownby, Wallbrown, &Brown, 1982;Rucker, 1%7;Tallent & Reiss, 1959a, 1959b. Several studies are representative (for more comprehensive reviews, see Ownby, 1987;Shellenberger , 1982).…”

“…Berry (1975) surveyed teachers about reports and found that about 30% of the sample felt that there was too much psychological terminology in reports and that the reports were not clear and lucid. Investigating special education teachers' perceptions of reports, Ownby, Wallbrown, and Brown (1982) discovered that although some types of basic data such as behavioral observations were typically included in reports, the significance of the behavior reported was not always made explicit.…”

“…Based on this analysis, Ownby and Wallbrown (1986) proposed that statements in reports should consist of logical sequences moving from basic data to MLC to conclusion and recommendation. They suggest that this procedure keeps MLCs from becoming jargon by relating them to defining descriptions easily understood by the reader.…”