To address this problem, schools and independent practitioners have developed social skills therapies. Often, these take the form of formal practice sessions set in an office or classroom. Sometimes, social skills therapists use curricula developed by experts - but more often they simply practice play skills and conversational techniques.
Over the past years, a number of researchers have conducted studies to figure out whether this type of therapy really helps kids achieve more typical social relationships. A group at Indiana University did a "meta study" to review the existing reports. Here's what they found:
A meta-analysis of 55 published research studies reveals programs designed to teach social skills to children with autism are failing to meet their goals. The study, conducted at Indiana University, found that outcomes for social skills training were poor overall, but programs held in normal classroom settings were more likely to result in positive changes than programs held in other environments.Obviously, this finding would suggest (in my opinion very reasonably) that artificial settings in which autistic children practice social skills with one another and an adult are unlikely to produce much in the way of "typical" social behavior. From what I have seen so far, these sessions tend to produce adult-pleasing behaviors (such as using please and thank you, asking follow-up questions, and making eye contact). But they do very little to help our children understand typical kids, who tend NOT to say please, ask about the weekend, or even make much eye contact!
In fact, because these sessions are so often taught by adult women to little boys, I believe they wind up helping the boys to act more like adult women! Women are the ones who love to sit around and chat, make eye contact, and generally share feelings and experiences. Boys and men, at least in my experience, are far more likely to actually DO things together (play games, share technology and the like) - and to converse relatively little. When they do talk, it's usually about the activity in which they're engaged, not about distant people and things.
Of course, the ideal would be to get groups of typical and autistic children together in naturalistic settings - recess, lunch, after school - to share things like gameboy strategies or just to shoot hoops. So far, our school district has told us consistently that this is impossible! The reasons range from scheduling conflicts to privacy issues to lack of staffing.
What do you think of this meta-study's outcome? Have you seen successful or unsuccessful social skills programs? What would you recommend as a most successful model?
Over the past three years I have run 9 web forums for Aspies. These forums contain some 600 members. Those that have mentioned getting social skills training report NO positive results from it. Many say that examples used to teach social skills are unrealistic.
From their perspective (and mine) what is needed is tolerence by non-Aspies for all those who are “different.” That would solve the social integration problem.
I don’t agree that some vague sense of “tolerance” would solve the problem. It’s just not reasonable to expect elementary-school age kids to be able to understand and respond “correctly” to a disorder has complicated as autism — unless they have a sibling or someone else close with the disorder. What they see, too often, is someone acting “weird” — perhaps disconnected, perhaps tuning them out, or engaging in behaviors which may even frighten the kids.
Many times the problem is that the child or adult with autism appears to be uncaring about the other person’s thoughts and feelings. No matter how you slice this, this is going to be a turn-off. How does just tolerance solve that? If you’re talking with someone and they keep going on and on about what they want, and not listening to you, it natural to try to move on. You can be “tolerant” and just stand there and try to get into what they’re saying — but that would often be artificial.
Nothing works when just one side is doing all the adjusting. We can try to teach people to understand people with autism — but unless people with autism give some positive feedback to their listeners and potential friends–this will only go so far.
the problem with some on the autustic spectrum is that they learn in roleplay situations and can often repeat the roleplay but come unstuck if there are any changes….to the scenario
out of context real life situations for socializing they the still have a problem with….not all of them of course
Fundamental inflexibility of Asperger’s sufferers would seem to doom any attempt to apply role-playing outside the context within which it is received.
Actually, some drama therapists have had very good luck with role play – and I’ve also seen Floortime (a form of play therapy) work well to build role play skills.
While it’s true that folks with ASD’s generally do best with memorized scripts, I’ve been very impressed with folks’ ability to improvise, be really funny, and generally come up with great novel ways to interact. Of course, you do need the right person to help develop those skills – and a safe environment in which to practice them! (BTW – my son, who plays clarinet, has no problem at all in improvising his own “sad” and “happy” music!)
Lisa
I believe that different things work differently with different children. Some of the most basic AND important social skills can be learned if the adult models them very naturally in day to day play and situations. Probably, social skills therapy isn’t harmful, but one could question whether or not it is necessarally any more valuable than say interacting with the child the way a parent/teacher or occupational therapist does. Individual choices should be made by the family and what they feel is best for their child and situation.
Social skills training by a good language pathologist with a thorough understanding of ASD can be effective in the small group setting. But, the individual needs to also have regular opportunities to carry their acquired knowledge and skills over into a more realistic social environment. Peers DO need to be aware of the social disability of the ASD individual in order for success to be achieved. I don’t agree with those who hold that youngsters cannot be taught to like or respect there peer with ASD. Those who love teaching would welcome such a challenge and find a way to overcome any such obstacles.
The article deals with children, but many autistic adults are also working on social skills training or being forced to do so. While some adults claim to benefit from the training, my own situation shows that a number of additional factors that affect this population can hamper progress.
Temple Grandin, a woman who is well known in the autism community and herself has the condition, said that an autistic person’s basic comfort and sensory needs have to be met before he can even think of working on social skills.
I was diagnosed with autism at age 3 but received no educational interventions at all because the mental health profession didn’t know much about the condition and my parents went into such deep denial they refused to even acknowledge me as a child with special needs. I spent all my 50 years struggling to function in mainstream settings and failing. Despite the highly social environments I was exposed to and family that considered sociality more important than anything else, I learned nothing about relating to people. If anything, my aversion to all things social and need for solitude just intensified over the years. Living in a big city crowded with irritable and abrasive people doesn’t help any either.
After spending all these years struggling to keep up with an increasingly difficult job and personal responsibilities without support, I developed the burnout that high functioning adults who are under constant stress and don’t get the proper support are prone to when they get older. My nerves are now too depleted to learn anything at all. Trying to force social skills training or any other demands on me now would just push me over the edge.
Although I do know basic manners and some of the more obvious rules needed to get by, I can’t make use of that knowledge when I’m under severe stress, upset or in overload. Work alone takes so much out of me I have to be left alone after even a few hours of it. Contending with the rigors of Montreal, an abrasive big city where I can’t even get my most basic needs met, uses up even more of my limited resources. Along with autism I have a number of other conditions, including severe sensory integration disorder, that make it even harder for me to be pleasant and sociable.
On my worst days, when I know that I’ll just offend others with my poor social skills and moodiness, I keep to myself and even call sick to work if I have to.
-Marla Comm
Montreal, Canada
Cynthia wrote: “Nothing works when just one side is doing all the adjusting.”
Cynthia, when autistic people approach someone to talk, they are already reaching half way because of the difficulty with interaction we have with NT’s.
Before we make sweeping generalizations about a group of people, we need to stop and understand that perhaps we do not share the same life experiences.
I’m forced to live in a world with very few like me. I’ve learned to make adaptations to my natural style. You can as well.
An Autistic Man
US
I have been involved in developing and running a number of social skills groups and feel that you really need to take on a developmental approach like Floortime combined with other “best practice” strategies. A combination of FT using high animation, following the child’s lead and interests and having FUN combined with skill streaming and RDI games has proven positive within our groups.
Jen
I think that it is interesting that society, educators, and extended family often insist that the individual who has a neurological disorder, autism, make an assessment of others’ interests or comfort, reflect on an appropriate response and adjust their own response accordingly.
Apparently, typicals are incapable of executive functioning. Now, truly, which group should be in the social skills class?
I teach social skills to kids and I train parents to help them work with their own children. I’ve seen great progress in some cases, especially when the kids and parents are enthusiastically trying to make concrete changes, like having more friends or getting along with the teacher.
Social skills training is a complex issue and it’s tough to make generalizations. Certainly, adults should not be forced to take training they don’t need or want. We all have the right to be ourselves. However, for adults struggling to get along at work or in relationships, focused social skills training can help them translate unspoken and often illogical social conventions into more straightforward behaviors, or to manage the stress of living in a neuro-typical environment.
With social skills training for kids, it’s important that parents pay close attention to what their kids are being taught. A well trained social skills therapist is aware that little boys don’t interact like grown women and wouldn’t try to teach them to act that way. It’s also important to help kids generalize the skills to other settings, so a good therapist will be working with the child’s teachers.
Some social skills training is performed by people with very little training in the field. Parents and adults should carefully screen the professionals giving social skills training.
продам Форд-Фокус 2008 года за 200 тр. торг возможет. срочно!!!
+7 960 200 9209
I am adult with autism. I have a blog and today wrote about the misunderstandings that develop when I make an attempt to befriend someone new.
My blog is http://nakedjoy.blogspot.com and is open to everyone, but I’m especially interested in hearing from other adults with autism.
What you want are two things: Improvement in Emotional Intelligence or empathy as distinct from Social Intelligence at all to begin with, but as far as social aptitude or Social intelligence distinctly, indeed some sort of applied Social Anthropology or Sociology, not rigid context specific manners or Behavior Modification. Perhaps also Psychodynamically, better attachment and trust, which, of course, is always a two way street. -Autonomy, not heteronomy.