Social Skills Interventions

Introduction

One of the most important aspects of growing up is learning how to function in different areas of life, which researchers call human development. As defined by Lumen Learning (n.d.), human development refers to one’s physical, cognitive, and psychosocial growth. One facet of psychosocial development is the development of social skills, though this can be a challenge for many individuals. Social skills interventions were developed to assist those growing in their psychosocial development. This blog will further expand on the purpose and benefits of social skills interventions, the types of social skills interventions utilized at Sunfield Center, and the effectiveness of those social skills interventions.

Purpose and Benefits of Social Skills Interventions 

First, it is important to consider the purpose and benefits of social skills interventions. Research states that social skills interventions (SSIs) are common treatment approaches for autistic individuals across the lifespan, as their goals are to diminish “the negative impacts of the social communication differences associated with autism” (Moody et al., 2022). 

There are numerous benefits of social skills interventions, one of which is the development of communication and conversational skills. This involves learning how to start conversations, continue conversations, and understand body language. A few other benefits of social skills interventions include the development of emotional management and problem-solving skills, friendship building, and feeling a sense of belonging.

Types of Social Skills Interventions 

There are many social skills interventions used in clinical settings, as well as evidence-based practices used throughout manualized and non-manualized work. However, as noted in the beginning, this blog will focus on four social skills interventions utilized by clinicians at Sunfield Center, which are as follows:

• PEERS® for Teens
• PEERS® for Young Adults
• Skillstreaming
• Superflex 

Effectiveness of the Social Skills Interventions 

PEERS for Teens

This curriculum is catered to individuals between the ages of 13 and 17. The purpose of this curriculum is to help young adults learn how to develop and maintain friendships, build conversational skills (e.g., entering and exiting conversations, resolving disagreements, etc.), practice good sportsmanship, and plan get-togethers with friends. As for the effectiveness of this curriculum, research indicates that the adolescents showed significant improvement in their social engagement, social cognition, social communication, social motivation, and knowledge of PEERS® skills and concepts from pre- to post-intervention (Hill et al. 2018). In addition, social anxiety symptoms significantly improved following treatment for adolescents (Factor et al., 2022). Greater improvements in social responsiveness following PEERS® were also associated with greater reductions in social anxiety symptoms (Factor et al., 2022).

PEERS® for Young Adults

This curriculum is catered to individuals between the ages of 18 and 30. The purpose of this curriculum is similar to PEERS® for Teens, with the addition of teaching young adults dating etiquette and skills. As for the effectiveness of this curriculum, one study indicated an increase in social skill knowledge, friendship quality, and conversational skills from pretest to posttest intervention after an average of 12 sessions per semester over each academic school year (Rose et al. 2021). Similarly to the results for PEERS® for Teens, social anxiety symptoms significantly improved following treatment for young adults, and greater improvements in social responsiveness following PEERS® were associated with greater reductions in social anxiety symptoms (Factor et al., 2022). 

Skillstreaming 

Skillstreaming is suitable for individuals in preschool all the way up to 12th grade. The purpose of this intervention is to help individuals with building conversation skills, planning skills, labeling and identifying emotions, and expressing oneself. Although there is limited research specifically on the Skillstreaming curriculum, many research-based and empirically supported practices are used within it (Ellingsen et al, 2017). These include modeling, role-play, interactive feedback, and generalization, all of which have research supporting the effectiveness when used to develop social skills interventions.

Superflex 

This curriculum is intended for individuals between the ages of 7 and 10, but can be adapted for use with younger and older kids. Superflex takes a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) approach in helping individuals develop self-awareness about their emotions and behaviors, as well as learning to self-regulate. 

As with Skillstreaming, there isn’t much research on Superflex specifically. However, the treatment delivery methods utilized to teach social skills are important and can affect the overall effectiveness of the intervention being used. With Superflex specifically, treatment delivery methods such as behavioral modeling, behavioral rehearsal, and interactive feedback are utilized. Behavioral modeling can help in making concepts that might be viewed as theoretical or conceptual more real and concrete. In addition, it’s stated that autistic individuals receiving instruction about having two-way conversations are more successful at synthesizing this information by visually observing these tactics in action (Ellingsen et al, 2017). As for behavioral rehearsal and interactive feedback, it’s recommended that autistic individuals practice newly-learned social skills with social coaches, peer mentors, or other group members before practicing these skills outside of the treatment setting. This helps in easing the initial anxiety of utilizing the newly-learned social skills outside of the treatment setting and allows the group facilitators to provide interactive feedback when coaching to troubleshoot difficulty with acquisition and application of skills.

Conclusion

With the acquisition of social skills being an important aspect of human development, resources like social skills interventions can assist those growing in their psychosocial development. As mentioned above, there are many social skills interventions utilized in clinical settings that all focus on the development and enhancement of social skills, such as learning to develop and maintain friendships, building conversational skills, regulating emotions, and dating etiquette. With that being said, deciding which interventions may be most effective for an individual can be overwhelming. However, that’s what clinicians are able to help out with, so don’t fret!

References

Ellingsen, R., Bolton, C., & Laugeson, E. (2021). Evidence-based social skills groups for individuals 

with autism spectrum disorder across the lifespan. Handbook of Social Skills and Autism Spectrum Disorder, 343-358. https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-3-319-62995-7.pdf?pdf=button#page343 

Evidence for Superflex Curriculum. (n.d.). socialthinking.com. 

https://www.socialthinking.com/evidence/superflex-curriculum 

Factor, R. S., Moody, C. T., Sung, K. Y., & Laugeson, E. A. (2022). Improving social anxiety and 

social responsiveness in autism spectrum disorder through PEERS®. Evidence-based Practice in Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 7(1), 142–159. https://doi.org/10.1080/23794925.2021.2013138 

Lumen Learning. (n.d.). Defining Human Development | Lifespan 

Development. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-lifespandevelopment/chapter/defining-human-development/ 

Moody, C. T., Schiltz, H. K., Ratto, A. B., Gulsrud, A. C., & Laugeson, E. A. (2022). Measurement of 

social skills treatment outcome in autism: Moving beyond informant reports and considering diversity. International review of research in developmental disabilities (pp. 265–312). Elsevier BV. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.irrdd.2022.05.007 

PEERS® for Adolescents | Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. (n.d.). 

https://www.semel.ucla.edu/peers/peers-%C2%AE-adolescents 

PEERS® for Young Adults | Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. (n.d.). 

https://www.semel.ucla.edu/peers/peers-%C2%AE-young-adults 

Rose, A., Kelley, K. R., & Raxter, A. B. (2021). Effects of PEERS® social skills training on young 

adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities during college. Behavior Modification, 45(2), 297–323. https://doi.org/10.1177/0145445520987146