Classroom Decision Making as a Function of Diagnostic Labels and Perceived Competence

Special education teachers were asked to make some decisions about a 4th grade boy who was portrayed as learning disabled or emotionally handicapped and whose work samples were representative of one of two levels of competence (i.e., high or low) Classroom placement decisions and future performance predictions were foud to be a function of the child's perceived competence. The results were discussed with regard to implications within labeling research and mainstreaming.