Autism and Social Skills Development

Patty Crews

Definition of Autism

• According to DSM-5 Autism/autistic disorder, Asperger’s disorder, childhood disintegrative disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified are listed in the same category. ASD is characterized by two things:

• 1) deficits in social communication and social interaction and• 2) restricted repetitive behaviors, interests, and activities

(RRSs)• Because BOTH components are required for diagnosis of ASD,

social communication disorder is diagnosed if no RRBs are present.

American Psychiatric Association (2013)

Common Social Skills Deficits

Social interactions involve:• verbal communication • non-verbal communication• personal space • social engagement • social reciprocity• topic flow• eye contact• humor Scholastic Intervention Solutions (2014)

Common Social Skills Deficits

• Unwilling to make direct eye contact with people • May not respond when name is called or when spoken

to• Finds it difficult to understand other people. May not

be able to read facial expressions or body language.• Unaware of social conventions/appropriate social

behavior such as the importance of taking turns during a conversation.

• Extremely directive and controlling or overly passive. Research Autism (2013)

Common Social Skills Deficits

• Conflict presents a problem. They may not understand the difference in being assertive and being aggressive.

• Indifferent or aversive to physical contact and affection. They may not like being touched or hugged.

• Objects such as toys are not shared and neither are emotions shared with other people.

• Express inappropriate emotions (such as laughing or smiling at the wrong time and place.)

• Prefer solitary activities and does not try to make friends or would like to make friends but is unsuccessful.

Research Autism (2013)

Social Development Theory

• Social –Constructivist Theory has been used to develop integrated play groups by Wolfberg influenced by Vygotsgy.

• Cognitive Behavior Theory developed by Aaron T. Beck helps with anxiety

Hall (2013)• The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and

Emotional Learning (CASEL) one of the leaders in the development of social-emotional learning (SEL). Huitt and Dawson (2011)

Social Development Theory

• Albert Bandura• Robert Sears• B.F Skinner• Walters and colleaguesWere primary cultivators of the Social Learning Theory Grusec (1992)

Social Development Theory

• Self-awareness: knowing what one is feeling and thinking; having a realistic assessment of one’s own abilities and a sense of self-confidence;

• Social awareness: understanding and appreciating what others are feeling and thinking; interacting positively with diverse groups;

• Self-management: to control one’s emotions so they facilitate rather than interfere; setting and accomplishing goals; persevering in setbacks; • Relationship skills: using communication to establish and maintain healthy rewarding relationships, cooperation, resistance to negative social pressure, negotiating solutions and seeking help as needed

• Responsible decision making: using related factors to make accurate choices and accept consequence of those action, showing mutual respect for all.

Huitt & Dawson (2011)

Research on Social Skills Development Theory

• Social communication is at the heart of the human experience

• Research explains that ASD children fail to develop communication/social skills normally

• Assessment of individual social skills is vital for accurate and successful interventions.

Boutot & Myles (2011)

Suggested Assessments of Social Skills

• Preschool Language Scale (PLS-4). Zimmerman, Steinek, & Pond, 2002.• Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals–Preschool (CELF-P). Semel, Wiig, &

Secord, 2003.• Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF-4) (4th ed.). Semel, Wiig, &

Secord, 1992.• Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT). Dunn, Dunn, Robertson, & Eisenberg,

1981.• Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language (CASL). Carrow-Woolfolk, 1999.• Oral and Written Language Scales (OWLS). Carrow-Woolfolk, 1995.• Goldman Fristoe Test of Articulation. Goldman, & Fristoe, 2000.• Social Communication Questionnaire. Rutter, Bailey, & Lord, 2003.• Do, Watch, Listen, Say: Social and communication intervention for children with

autism. Quill, 2000. Boutot & Myles (2011)

Develop A Profile By TestingCommunication Interactions: Reflect on the Frequency, Form, and Function • How often does child initiate and respond to social communication? a. Track and compare these numbers • How does he or she initiate these interactions? a. Pointing versus using an open hand or grabbing someone’s hand, etc.• What are the functions/purposes of the social-communication interactions? a. Request (object, action, or interaction) b. Protest c. Social engagement (i.e., share experience) Boutot & Myles (2011)

Personal Profile Information

• Interests and Strengths Consider child’s favorite activities and learning style• Joint Attention Span Consider joint eye contact. Is eye gaze used to interact.• Symbol Use and Intention Consider the reciprocal use of nonverbal symbols (eye gaze, gestures and facial expressions.• Language Consider the verbal communication skills Consider the practical language skills Is he/she a literal thinker only Is he/she conscious of the feelings, thoughts , and emotions of others Boutot & Myles (2011)

Interventions

• Design lessons using the assessment data• Interventions should be personal, meaningful and

opportunities to participate should flourish • Interventions should be practical, natural

communication.• Lessons should offer social skills instruction in the

setting that the child will likely be in.• Staying involved in serious intervention with many

learning opportunities is crucial. Boutot & Myles (2011)

Interventions: A small sampling

• Interventions serve various purposes from behavioral to pragmatic

• Behavioral Interventions: Discrete trial instruction and verbal behavior are teacher directed to illicit appropriate responses

• Naturalistic Interventions: Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) and Pivotal Response Training (PRT)

Boutot & Myles (2011

Interventions: A small sampling

• Social Pragmatic Interventions: Social Communication Emotional Regulation Transactional Supports (SCERTS) which is a framework for designing an intervention plan

Boutot & Myles (2011

Examples of Social Communication

• Kindergarteners playing with blocks, taking turns stacking them while building a tower. While building they say, “Don’t knock it down,” “Build it higher,” “No, don’t make it fall” They both laugh when it does tilt over.

• Girls playing in the kitchen center. “Let’s cook breakfast.” “I want pancakes.” “Do you want some pancakes?” “Yes, I want two.”

Examples of Social Reciprocity

• When infants interact with caregivers by imitating vocalizations; using objects in turn-taking, such as shaking a rattle; and playing games like peek-a-boo.

• “cool,” “right on,” and “uh-huh” are responses for the not so talkative in instances when nothing substantial is needed along with eye contact or gestures.

Hall (2013)

Examples of Social Cognition

• When children play they automatically know what to do when someone says, “Ready, set, go,” or “Tag, you’re it”

• When a child says, “ I am feeling sick” and the child next to him raises his hand to tell the teacher.

Hall (2013

Examples of Social Initiation

• “Hey, look” or “Look at this,” is an appropriate conversation starter for preschoolers. They would then continue with the conversation.• Joint eye gaze (catching one’s eye) and asking

an appropriate question, “What’s that?” or “What are you doing?”

Hall (2013)

ReferenceAmerican Psychiatric Association (2013). Highlights of changes from DSM-4-TR to

DSM-5. Retrieved from: http://www.psychiatry.org/dsm5 Click on changes from DSM-4-TR to DSM-5 (direct link)

Boutot, E. Myles, A. (2011). Autism Spectrum Disorders: Foundations, Characteristics and Effective Strategies. Pearson. Upper Saddle River, NJ.

Grusec, J. (1992). Social learning theory and developmental psychology: The legacies of Robert Sears and Albert Bandura. American Psychological Association, Inc.

Hall, L. (2013). Autism Spectrum Disorders: From theory to practice. Pearson. Upper Saddle River, NJ.

Huitt, W. and Dawson, C. (2011) Social development: Why it is important and how to impact it. Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved from http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/papers/socdev.pdf

Research Autism. (2013). Social skills and autism. Retrieved from: http://researchautism.net/autism_issues_challenges_problems.ikml?print&ra=3&infolevel=4

Scholastic Intervention Solutions(2014). Recognizing Autism: Overview of social skills functioning and programming. Retrieved from: http://www.scholasticinterventions.org/2011/07/13/ recognizing-autism-overview-of-social-skills-functioning-and-programming