Parent Evaluations of Traditional and Accessible Psychological Reports

School psychologists spend considerable time writing psychological reports (Farmer et al., 2021). Despite federal requirements for "understandable terms" (IDEA, 2004), parents often struggle to understand reports. This experimental study examines parent perceptions of traditional versus accessible report formats. Parents ( N = 153) read paired reports about fictional children—one traditional (test-by-test organization, technical language, college-level readability) and one accessible (thematic organization, plain language, middle-school readability)—in counterbalanced order. Parents rated accessible reports significantly more useful for both learning disability (Hedges' g = 0.71) and ADHD (Hedges' g = 0.72) cases. Item-level analyses showed largest effects for comprehension items, indicating traditional reports create accessibility barriers despite containing adequate content. Qualitative findings revealed parents found traditional reports difficult to understand and disempowering, while accessible reports used plain language and helpful organization. Findings support accessible report writing as evidence-based practice aligned with federal mandates and professional standards.