Assessing the information needs of families in early intervention

Abstract

The recent history of early intervention services for children who are vulnerable and their families in the United States has certainly been one of progressive expansion and refinement. The model projects operating in select communities or university settings and the beginnings of more widespread programs in the 1960s and 1970s have been transformed into a vibrant and visible national program providing early intervention services and supports to which all eligible young children with established disabilities have access (see Guralnick, 2000a, in press-b). Preventive intervention programs for children at risk for developmental disabilities have exhibited considerable growth as well, although these programs lack the many legislative mandates and the coherence of programs for children with established disabilities.