Learning Disabilities Research: Defining Populations

Abstract

This article emphasizes the need of a uniform format for defining the populations selected for research, particularly with disabled individuals. It is maintained that if researchers describe their subject populations according to certain criteria, other researchers would be better able to replicate their efforts and practitioners, in turn, would be more apt to implement their recommendations. It is suggested that researchers explain populations consistently within at least the four following categories: situational variables, demographic variables, instructional variables, and motivational level. The population descriptions from three articles are presented and scrutinized in terms of the four categories.