Ecomaps (drawing-based assessments of social networks) were administered to primary school-aged children in order to ascertain whether Ecomaps might be useful in universal screening. Participants included 61 children (40.9% female) aged six to ten (M = 7.39, SD = 1.19), Kindergarten through third grade students in a predominantly African American (89.5%) public charter school in New Orleans. The study hypothesis was that children who report experiencing higher levels of social support and lower levels of social stress (derived from Ecomap index of Support-Stress balance) would have better social-emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes than children who report lower levels of support and higher levels of stress. Ecomaps were administered to all participants and correlated with school-based archival data, including results of the Behavior Assessment System for Children, 2nd Edition (BASC-2), school behavior grades, and academic records. Stress-support indices from Ecomaps were significantly correlated with social-emotional and behavioral outcomes, but correlations with academic outcomes were not significant, providing partial support for the study's hypothesis. Based on these findings, Ecomaps might be used as self-report measures to identify children at risk for, or currently experiencing, social-emotional or behavioral problems. This measure could be helpful to school psychologists and other school-based mental health professionals who are attempting to understand and respond to the strengths and needs of the children in their care.
