Analysis of a social story intervention to increase appropriate social interactions in children with autism
by Bailey, Dawn A., Ph.D., THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY, 2008, 160 pages; 3321455

Abstract:

More than ten years of research has been conducted on the use of social stories to change the behavior of children with autism, yet the results of these studies continue to be inconclusive. While many articles indicate that social stories do result in positive behavior change, these articles are fraught with errors or threats to internal validity. The most promising results to date indicate that social stories are most effective when combined with prompts and/or reinforcement. This study sought to examine the impact of social stories on independent and prompted peer-directed social interactions while measuring frequencies of prompts and reinforcers available in the natural environment. These data were then compared to results obtained when prompts were combined with social stories or prompts were delivered without social stories, continuing to collect data on incidence of positive consequences. These data were evaluated using modified reversal designs with four participants who had all been diagnosed with autism. Three males and one female, with ages ranging from 10 to 21 years old, served as participants. Results indicate that increases over baseline in independent appropriate interactions were seen for all four participants, especially during the social story plus prompts condition and prompts only conditions. With only one exception, the social story alone (without prompts) did not result in increased social interaction. The greatest increases occurred when natural positive consequences were available at high rates. These data provide direction for future research on the use of social stories including incorporating prompts into the social story protocol and scheduling reinforcement for behaviors identified in the social story.

 
Advisor
SchoolTHE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY
SourceDAI/B 69-07, p. , Oct 2008
Source TypeDissertation
SubjectsBehavioral sciences
Publication Number3321455
Adobe PDF Access the complete dissertation:
 

» Find an electronic copy at your library.
  Use the link below to access a full citation record of this graduate work:
  http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl%3furl_ver=Z39.88-2004%26res_dat=xri:pqdiss%26rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation%26rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:3321455
  If your library subscribes to the ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (PQDT) database, you may be entitled to a free electronic version of this graduate work. If not, you will have the option to purchase one, and access a 24 page preview for free (if available).

About ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
With over 2.3 million records, the ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (PQDT) database is the most comprehensive collection of dissertations and theses in the world. It is the database of record for graduate research.

The database includes citations of graduate works ranging from the first U.S. dissertation, accepted in 1861, to those accepted as recently as last semester. Of the 2.3 million graduate works included in the database, ProQuest offers more than 1.9 million in full text formats. Of those, over 860,000 are available in PDF format. More than 60,000 dissertations and theses are added to the database each year.

If you have questions, please feel free to visit the ProQuest Web site - http://www.proquest.com - or call ProQuest Hotline Customer Support at 1-800-521-3042.