Evidence-Based Social Skills Interventions for Students at Risk for EBD

Abstract

Children and youth with or at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders (EBDs) present substantial challenges for schools, teachers, parents, and peers. Social skills interventions have been shown to be effective for this population. Meta-analytic reviews of this literature show that about 65% of students with EBD will improve when given social skills interventions. Social skills function as academic enablers and contribute to higher academic achievement. Problem behaviors function as academic disablers and are associated with lowered academic achievement. Next steps in this literature are to establish an evidence-based approach to classifying acquisition and performance deficits and to develop Tier 3 social skills intervention strategies.