Allison A. Battaglia

The Effects of a Social Skills Training Package on Social Engagement of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders in a Generalized Recess Setting

The present study provides a preliminary evaluation of the effects of the Superheroes Social Skills program, a practice-ready, multimedia social skills program, on social engagements of elementary-age children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Four children with ASD between the ages of 8 and 10 with current placements in inclusive public school settings participated in an 8-week intervention utilizing the intermediate skill components of the Superheroes Social Skills program. The intervention was presented once per week for approximately 30 min in the school settings. Analysis of data suggests that social engagements of participants during generalized recess periods increased following the introduction of intervention. Data on frequency of initiations and responses, as well as sociometric outcomes, were also collected as a secondary dependent variable and are discussed. Results suggest that pullout social skills training may result in effects that are generalized to more naturalistic settings. Limitations of the current study and suggestions for future research are reviewed.

Promoting Accurate Variability of Social Skills in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Restricted and repetitive behavior is a central feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), with such behaviors often resulting in lack of reinforcement in social contexts. The present study investigated training multiple exemplars of target behaviors and the utilization of lag schedules of reinforcement in the context of social skills training to promote appropriate and varied social behavior in children with ASD. Five participants with ASD between the ages of 7 and 9 attended a twice-weekly social skills group for 8 weeks. A multiple probe design across skills was utilized to assess intervention effects. During baseline, participants demonstrated low levels of skill accuracy and low appropriate variability in responding. During continuous reinforcement with one trained exemplar, skill accuracy increased while appropriate variability remained low. Training of three exemplars of target skills resulted in minimal improvements in appropriate variability. Introduction of a Lag 2 schedule with three trained exemplars was generally associated with increased appropriate variability. Further appropriate variability was observed during Lag 4 with three trained exemplars. Limitations and implications are discussed.

School-Based Social Skills Training for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder:

The present study evaluated the effects of the Superheroes Social Skills program, a social skills curriculum for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Previous research has found the curriculum to improve social engagements of children with ASD during unstructured recess periods but has been limited in research design and lack of maintenance data. Five elementary-age participants with current placements in inclusive public school settings were included in the study. A multiple baseline design across participants was used to determine the effects of the intervention on social engagement during unstructured recess periods, as well as teacher ratings of social functioning and sociometric status. Visual and statistical analyses of data indicate increased social engagement of participants during recess periods following introduction of social skills training. Improvements were also observed in teacher ratings of social functioning and sociometric status. Limitations of the current study are also discussed.

Peer-Mediated Social Skills Training for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

A utism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by impaired social communication and social interaction skills, as well as restrictive and repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, and activities (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Recent estimates suggest that ASD is the fastest growing disability in the United States, affecting an estimated 1 in 88 children (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2012). Consequently, public school districts have observed similar growth in the number of students being served with ASD, given that 406,957 cases were classified under autism in 2012, an increase of 7,414% since initial classification in 1992 (U.S. Department of Education, 1995, 2012). Given the rapid increase in the number of students with a special education classification of autism, it is essential that school personnel be knowledgeable of best practices for children with ASD. Teachers must be skilled in providing differentiated instruction to adequately meet the needs of students with ASD who require additional attention and support (Fuchs, Fuchs, & Stecker, 2010). Although implementation of evidence-based practices is required by current legislation (No Child Left Behind Act, 2002), many evidencebased practices for individuals with ASD are not implemented in schools due to limited time and resources (Bellini & McConnell, 2010)—often associated with challenges of balancing targeted intervention for students with ASD and instruction of the larger group of students (e.g., Tilly, 2003). Instead, many of the intervention strategies most regularly implemented by public school personnel for children with ASD lack empirical support (Hess, Morrier, Heflin, & Ivey, 2007), waste the limited resources available to schools (Simpson et al., 2005), and fail to produce improvements in generalized settings (Bellini & Akullian, 2007).

A Comparison of Two Procedures for Assessing Preference in a Classroom Setting

The purpose of this study was to compare a method of assessing preference within a large group format to individual preference assessments. Individual preference assessments were conducted by presenting an array of four edible stimuli to a participant and allowing the participant to select a preferred stimulus, with stimuli removed from the array based on selection criteria. Group preference assessments were conducted in a classroom of 19 students, with all students responding simultaneously to a prompt to identify a preferred stimulus using Plickers—unique Quick Response code cards that are read by an accompanying smartphone app. During the group procedure, stimuli in the array were restricted on the individual participant level. Results indicated that the group procedure was a valid and rapid method of assessing preference within a group of individuals. Although additional research is required, practitioners and researchers may consider use of Plickers as a promising means of evaluating preference within a group setting.

Effects of a Social Skills Intervention on Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Peers with Shared Deficits

The current study evaluated the effects of the Superheroes Social Skills program (Jenson et al. 2011) in promoting accurate demonstration of target social skills in training and generalization conditions in young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and peers with shared social deficits. Three preschool-age children with ASD and 2 typically developing peers with social deficits attended twice-weekly social skills training over 5 weeks, with lessons targeting nonverbal, participation, requesting, and conversation skills. A multiple probe design across social skills replicated across participants was utilized to determine the effect of participation in the intervention on accurate demonstration of target social skills in training and generalized contexts. Results demonstrated improvements in accuracy of target skill demonstration following introduction of intervention. Parental reports of participant social functioning and parent stress were collected as secondary dependent measures, and also suggest improvements associated with intervention. Limitations and future directions are also discussed.