Social Skills Training for Schizophrenia: Research Update and Empirical Results

Abstract

This multicenter study compared the effectiveness of three newly developed social skills training programs (experimental groups) with that of a conventional, general social skills training program (control group) in terms of social functioning, cognitive abilities, and psychopathology. These new social skills programs focus on rehabilitation topics that are especially relevant for schizophrenia patients and also include specific cognitive interventions. Patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder were included in the study and assigned to residential, vocational, recreational, or general social skills training groups by significant matching variables. The first three months of therapy (treatment phase) were followed by a three-month aftercare phase. To date, 112 patients participating in the vocational, recreational, and general social skills training groups have been evaluated. Higher global treatment effects (effect sizes) were obtained, especially for the treatment phase, on almost all dependent variables in both experimental groups as compared with the control group. Treatment effects in all groups further increased during the aftercare phase. Analyses of variance and covariance indicated significantly greater improvements in some cognitive variables for the control group and higher symptom reduction for both experimental groups. The findings suggest that the specifically targeted social skills training programs contribute to better transfer and generalization effects. The results also indicate that psychopathology can be decisively reduced by the new programs. In view of these favorable effects, this new era of social skills training programs might replace more conventional programs in the future.