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An Update on Psychopharmacologic Medication

What Teachers, Clinicians, and Parents Need to Know

Dwight P. Sweeney, PhD, is an associate professor of educational psychology and counseling, and coordinator of the Educational Counseling and School Psychology Programs, California State University-San Bernardino. His research interests include the identification and treatment of children and adolescents with emotional or behavioral disorders. Address: Dwight P. Sweeney, Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling, California State University, 5500 University Parkway, San Bernardino, CA 92407-2397.

Steven R. Forness

Steven R. Forness, EdD, is a professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences and an inpatient school principal at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Hospital. His research interests include learning disabilities and early identification of children with emotional or behavioral disorders.

Kenneth A. Kavale

Kenneth A. Kavale, PhD, is a professor of special education at The University of Iowa. His research interests include learning disabilities and evaluating the effectiveness of special education.

Jennifer G. Levitt

Jennifer G. Levitt, MD, is an assistant professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences and director of the Extended Evaluation Clinic at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Hospital. Her research interests include neurodevelopment and social communication.

Four major classes of medications are commonly used to treat children with learning or behavioral disorders: stimulant medications, antidepressants or mood stabilizers, antipsychotics, and anticonvulsants. In addition, anxiolytics (e.g., Valium) and adrenergic agents (e.g., clonidine) are occasionally used to treat some disorders. Research estimates suggest that between 2% and 3% of all school children may be on one of these medications at any time. It has been further estimated that between 15% and 20% of children in special education may be receiving one or more of these drugs. This article discusses the potential uses and abuses of psychopharmacologic therapy with children or adolescents displaying learning, emotional, or behavioral disorders. It explores the indications and contraindications of such therapy and enumerates the known side effects of the most frequently prescribed medications.

Intervention in School and Clinic, Vol. 33, No. 1, 4-21 (1997)
DOI: 10.1177/105345129703300103


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