Publication year
2017
Citation Title
Parent-implemented behavioral skills training of social skills.
Journal Name
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis
Journal Volume
50
Issue Number
4
Page Numbers
805-818
DOI
10.1002/jaba.411
Summary
Children with autism spectrum disorders often lack social skills, and they may benefit from behavioral skills training by their parents. This study had four mother-son dyads complete a behavioral skills training that included instructions, modeling, role-play, and feedback. Mothers' behavioral skills training techniques and sons' social performance were measured at baseline, immediately post-training, and one month post-training. Results indicated that the training improved mothers' behavioral skills training techniques and children's social performance.
Key Findings
Compared to baseline, all mothers showed improved behavioral skills training techniques for both trained and untrained skills.
Children showed improved social performance with both the trained and untrained skills because of the training by their mothers.
The effect of training for both mothers and children remained one month after the training was completed.
Implications for Military Professionals
Collaborate with community-based, child-service programs to help military children with developmental disabilities receive comprehensive care
Facilitate support groups for families of children who have autism spectrum disorders to increase kinship among these families
Implications for Program Leaders
Offer support groups for parents whose children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders so that they can support each other and exchange information
Provide parenting workshops for military parents so that they can learn about how to improve children's social skills
Implications for Policy Makers
Encourage the development of programs that offer parent-implemented behavioral skills training for military families
Recommend education of professionals who work with military families on how to provide support to children with developmental disabilities
Methods
All children participants were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders; the method of recruitment was not reported.
Each mother-son dyad received behavioral skills training at their residence; the percentage of correct behavioral skills training steps completed by each mother was recorded at baseline and also at one month follow-up. In addition, children's percentage of correct social skills steps was also recorded.
Data were analyzed to examine the effect of behavioral skills training on children's social skills.
Participants
Participants were four mother-son dyads; all mothers were the biological mothers of their child; three out of the four mothers had advanced degrees.
The average age of the mothers was not reported (age range = 37-47 years); the average age of the sons was 10 years (age range = 9-12 years).
Most (75%) participants were White and 25% of participants were Black.
Limitations
The sample was small (four mother-son dyads), which may limit the reliability of the study.
Only mothers and sons were included in the study, so caution must be taken to generalize the results to fathers and daughters.
The children were between nine and 12 years old; therefore, the training results may not be applicable to children who are older or younger.
There were no data provided on the recruitment of the mother-son dyads, which limits the ability to understand the characteristics of the sample.
Avenues for Future Research
Increase the number of participants so that the study findings are more reliable
Examine whether the parent-implemented behavioral skills training can benefit children who have developmental problems other than autism spectrum disorders (e.g., attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder)
Conduct longitudinal studies to examine the long-term effect of the training on parenting practice and child performance
Focus
Civilian
Target Population
Population Focus
Abstract
Impairment in social skills is a primary feature of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs). Research indicates that social skills are intimately tied to social development and negative social consequences can persist if specific social behaviors are not acquired. The present study evaluated the effects of behavioral skills training (BST) on teaching four parents of children with ASDs to be social skills trainers. A nonconcurrent multiple baseline design across parent-child dyads was employed and direct observation was used to assess parent and child behaviors Results demonstrated substantial improvement in social skills teaching for all participants for trained and untrained skills. Ancillary measures of child performance indicated improvement in skills as well. High levels of correct teaching responses were maintained at a 1 month follow-up. This study extends current literature on BST while also providing a helpful, low-effort strategy to modify how parents can work with their children to improve their social skills.
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