Matson Evaluation Of Social Skills Research Articles

Mediation effect of social skills between impulsivity with substance abuse in adolescents

Article history: Received January 18, 2013 Received in revised format 8 June 2013 Accepted 10 June 2013 Available online June 15 2013 The aim of this study is to examine mediation effect of social skills between impulsivity with substance abuse in adolescents. The research sample consists of 616 students of vulnerable high schools in Ardabil City. Together the data of Impulsivity Scale, Matson social skills scale and substance abuse survey were used [Matson, J. L., Rotatori, A. F., & Helsel, W. J. (1983). Development of a rating scale to measure social skills in children: The Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY). Behaviour Research and therapy, 21(4), 335-340.]. The results show that impulsivity indirectly is associated with substance abuse students (P<0.001) through the effect on social skills. The results indicate that high levels of impulsivity and low-level social skills increase substance abuse in students. These results are consistent with other existing results found in the literature. © 2013 Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparing social skill profiles of children with autism spectrum disorders versus children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: Where the deficits lie

Marked socialization impairment is evident in both individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and individuals with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The current study utilizes the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Youngsters-II (MESSY-II) to explore similarities and discrepancies in the social skill profiles of children with ASD and children with ADHD ages 6–9 years old and 10–16 years old. Children with ASD and children with ADHD were both found to be significantly deficient in social skills compared to atypically developing peers without an Axis I or Axis II diagnosis; however, specific skill deficits vary between the groups. In particular, children with ASD exhibited a lack of adaptive social skills whereas children with ADHD demonstrated social skill knowledge but an increased level of maladaptive social behavior. The trends of socialization impairment over time were also found to differ in children with ASD versus children with ADHD. While children with ASD remained at similar levels of adaptive social skill impairment over age groups, children with ADHD were found to become more socially impaired in more areas over time. The distinct patterns and trends of social skill deficit found in children with ASD and children with ADHD can inform treatments targeted toward the specific deficits observed within each disorder.

How are trait emotional intelligence and social skills related to emotional and behavioural difficulties in adolescents?

Trait emotional intelligence construct shifted the interest in personality research to the investigation of the effect of global personality characteristics on behaviour. The Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) movement emphasised the cultivation of social skills for positive relationships. In this paper we investigate the role of students’ global personality characteristics and social skills in the occurrence of emotional and behavioural difficulties. Five hundred fifty-nine students aged 12–14 years, completed the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire–Adolescent Short Form (TEIQue–ASF), the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY), and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Students with higher trait emotional intelligence and stronger social skills were less likely to present emotional and behavioural difficulties. Trait emotional intelligence along with the acquisition of social skills were influential factors of students’ emotional and behavioural difficulties. The study presents a heuristic model for the interpretation of students’ emotional and behavioural difficulties and discusses implications for educators to improve the quality of students’ lives in schools.

Reliability of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY) for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

The purpose of this paper was to update the psychometrics of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Youngsters (MESSY) with children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), specifically with respect to internal consistency, split-half reliability, and inter-rater reliability. In Study 1, 114 children with ASD (Autistic Disorder, Asperger's Syndrome, or Pervasive Developmental Disorder – Not Otherwise Specified) were assessed using the MESSY. Participants ranged in age from 2 to 16 years. Study 1 found excellent internal consistency, and split half reliability. Using MESSY scores from two caregivers of 33 children, Study 2 found that the MESSY demonstrated moderate to high inter-rater reliability. As such, this study established the internal and inter-rater reliability of the MESSY for use among children with ASD.

An Examination of the Relationship Between Autism Spectrum Disorder, Intellectual Functioning, and Social Skills in Children

There is a dearth of research looking at how autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and IQ scores impact social skills. The present study aimed to extend the literature in this area by evaluating how ASD and IQ scores are related to ratings on a measure of appropriate and inappropriate social skills. Children without ASD and children with ASD participated in this study. Adaptive and maladaptive social skills were assessed with the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Youngsters-II (MESSY-II). Correlational and multiple regression analyses were then conducted. ASD diagnosis significantly predicted both adaptive/appropriate and hostile/inappropriate social skills. Children with ASD tended to have lower scores on the measure of adaptive/appropriate social skills, while displaying higher scores on the measure of hostile/inappropriate social skills. Children with higher IQ scores tended to have higher scores on the measure of adaptive/appropriate social skills. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Factor structure of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters-II (MESSY-II)

The importance of social skills in development is a well studied area of research, and deficits in these skills can have implications long into adulthood. Therefore, assessment tools must be able to aid clinicians in identifying areas of weaknesses to target in treatment. The purpose of the current paper was to investigate the factor structure of a well researched measure of social skills, the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY), which has recently been re-normed to update its psychometric properties. As such, this measure has now been dubbed the MESSY-II. This new norm sample was utilized in the current study to determine whether the original two factor structure for the MESSY would remain for the MESSY-II. Based on factor analysis, a three factor model was found to be ideal. Implications of these findings are discussed.

An Evaluation of Social Skills in Adults with Pica, Autism Spectrum Disorders, and Intellectual Disability

Adults with intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are often at risk for developing additional forms of psychopathology and/or challenging behaviors, including pica. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship of pica and social skills deficits. The Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Individuals with sEvere Retardation (MESSIER), a measure of social skill impairment, was administered to a group of adults with ID alone (n = 22), a group with ID and ASD (n = 22), and a group with ID, ASD, and pica (n = 15). The Pica + ASD + ID group exhibited significantly fewer pro-social behaviors than the ID alone group but had significantly more negative social skills than both other groups. These findings and the implications of these data are discussed.

The Relationship Between Abuse within the Family and Social Skills of Turkish Senior Primary School Children

I investigated instances of child abuse that second-stage primary school children experienced in the family environment and their social skills. The research sample consisted of 347 children aged between 12 and 14 who attended primary education 6th, 7th, and 8th grades in the province of Konya, Turkey. To collect the data I used the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY) Scale, which was developed by Matson, Rotatory, and Hessel in 1983, adapted to Turkish and tested for reliability and validity by Bacanlı and Erdoğan (2003); and the Domestic Child Abuse Scale-B Form (Bekçi, 2006). I found that physical abuse, directing to crime and sexual abuse, neglect and emotional threat, educational abuse, lack of rules and lack of support had a positive relationship with negative social skills. There was a negative relationship between supporting development and negative social skills.

Cross cultural differences of parent reported social skills in children with autistic disorder: An examination between South Korea and the United States of America

Symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorders are universally accepted; however, the reported severity of symptoms may be sensitive to cultural differences. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to examine the differences in reported symptoms of appropriate and inappropriate social skills between children and adolescents from South Korea (SK) and the United States (US). Scores on the three subscales of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters, Second Edition (MESSY-II) were compared between 147 participants from either SK (n=49) or the US (n=98). Children and adolescents from the two countries scored statistically different from each other on the Hostile, Adaptive/Appropriate, and Inappropriately Assertive subscales. However, the mean scores for participants from the two countries fell into the same impairment level on the MESSY-II, indicating no clinically significant differences. The implications of these results are discussed.

Investigating the Relationship between Self-Injurious Behavior, Social Deficits, and Cooccurring Behaviors in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Research suggests that self-injurious behavior (SIB) is related to social deficits and cooccurring problem behaviors in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. A sample of 95 participants with ASD was assessed on presence and frequency of SIB (Behavior Problems Inventory), social deficits (the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters-II) and cooccurring problem behaviors (ASD-Comorbidity-Child version). A model was created and tested to explain the relationship between these variables. Results showed that the model was acceptable in presenting the relationships between these variables. This information could be used to help predict which individuals are at risk of developing further cooccurring behavioral problems and determine risk markers for the development of social deficits.

The Effects of Eight Weeks of sports Activities on Self-Sufficiency, Social Skills and Some Physical Fitness Parameters in Children 9-10 Years of Age

In this study, the effects of 8 weeks of sports activities on self-sufficiency, social skills and some physical fitness parameters in children 9-10 years of age were examined. The sampling of the study was composed of a total of 45 students with 25 in the test group (10 males and 15 females), and 20 in the control group (8 males and 12 females), attending the Petkim Latife Hanım Primary School in Izmir. Different sports activities (athletics, yoga, basketball, educational games and dancing) were implemented for the test group for a total of 32 class periods. The “General Self-sufficiency Scale”, “Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY)” and the “Physical Fitness Tests” were implemented with the first test, final test method. The SPSS 15.0 program was used in the analysis of the data, the “Paired Samples T-Test” was used in the determination of the differences within the group, whereas, for the independent groups, the “Independent Samples T-Test” was used. It was found from the results obtained that there was not a statistically significant difference in the social skills and self-sufficiency values between the test and control groups (p>0.05). When the change within the test group was considered, it was observed that there was a positive statistically significant difference in the height, weight, flexibility, balance and fat percentages, whereas, it was observed that in the control group there was a positive statistically significant difference only in the height, weight and balance parameters (p<0.05).

A Multinational Study Examining the Cross Cultural Differences in Social Skills of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Comparison between the United Kingdom and the United States of America

Cases of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) have been reported world-wide and researchers are beginning to examine if differences occur among different countries. With social skill impairments being a main component of ASD, it is important to determine if these symptoms are consistent across cultures. The current study compared 160 children with ASD, 135 from the United States and 25 from the United Kingdom, on the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters-II (MESSY-II) which is composed of three subscales: Hostile, Adaptive/Appropriate, and Inappropriate Assertiveness/Overconfident. First, the MESSY-II was found to have excellent internal reliability for both countries. Secondly, findings indicated that significant differences only occurred on the Adaptive/Appropriate subscale with the US children having greater adaptive social skills than the UK children. However, for both groups, mean scores fell in the severe range of impairment. Importance of similarities and differences in social skills between countries are discussed.

Social Skills Differences Between the Autism Spectrum Disorders

Social skills deficits are one of the core features of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), with many believing that this symptom domain is the defining feature of individuals with ASDs. Presently, Asperger’s Disorder, Autistic Disorder, and PDD-NOS make up the spectrum, but future revisions to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders propose that all of these disorders should be collapsed. Much debate has centered on this decision as some researchers believe the three ASDs to be uniquely different. As such, the purpose of the current investigation was to examine social skills differences between the three ASD groups. Participants were children ages 4 through 16 years who had been diagnosed with Asperger’s Disorder, Autistic Disorder, or PDD-NOS and who did not have comorbid intellectual disability. Their scores on the factors of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters-II (i.e., Hostile, Adaptive/Appropriate, and Inappropriately Assertive/Overconfident) were compared. Children with Asperger’s Disorder demonstrated significantly greater adaptive/appropriate social skills when compared to children with Autistic Disorder, and they also exhibited greater impairments with respect to hostility. No other differences were noted between ASD groups. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Propiedades psicométricas de la Escala MESSY (versión autoinforme) en niños argentinos

Se evalúan las propiedades psicométricas de la versión de Autoinforme de la Escala Matson para la Evaluación de Habilidades Sociales con Jóvenes (Matson, Rotatori &amp; Helsel, 1983), que permite evaluar habilidades sociales especificas implicadas en comportamientos adaptativos y no adaptativos. Se estudia la estructura factorial y consistencia interna en una muestra de niños cordobeses (n = 578) con edades entre los 7 y 13 anos (M = 9.48, DE = 1.47), de ambos sexos (52.77% varones). Se analizaron los datos y variables de manera exploratoria, y luego se analizo la estructura factorial. La estructura de 5 factores resulto la más simple y teóricamente coherente: Agresividad/Conducta Antisocial, Habilidades Sociales Apropiadas, Amistad, Sobreconfianza/Celos/Soberbia y Soledad/Ansiedad Social. Los índices de consistencia interna fueron buenos o aceptables en la mayoría de dimensiones. Las diferencias de sexo en las distintas dimensiones y en la puntuación total ofrecen evidencia de la validez del instrumento.

An Investigation of Social Skills in Children with Different Perfectionism Levels.

The purpose of this study is to analyze social skills in children with different perfectionism. The participants were 514 (254 females and 260 males) elementary school students. Data were collected from “multidimensional perfectionism scale” and “Matson evaluation of social skills with youngsters”. In order to analyze data, t test were employed. In the study it was found that average positive social skill scores according to perfectionism levels did not significantly vary. Furthermore, it was found that average negative social behaviors scores according to perfectionism levels significantly varied and average negative social behavior scores of the children with high levels of perfectionism were higher than those of the children with low levels of perfectionism.

Cutoffs for the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters-II (MESSY-II) for typically developing children and for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders

The acquisition of social skills is an essential part of childhood and adolescent development. Due to its critical nature, assessment of appropriate and inappropriate social skills is necessary in order to determine whether or not deficits or excesses exist, thereby guiding treatment. The Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY) was developed for this purpose, and it has recently been renormed and revised. Beyond a general understanding of where strengths and weaknesses lie, it is important to also be able to identify clinically significant impairments versus those that may be observed as a normal part of development. This was accomplished with typically developing children to establish cutoffs for the revised scale, the MESSY-II. Additionally, a sample of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders were administered the MESSY-II and their cutoff scores were examined.

Reliability and Validity of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills With Youngsters

Social skills are an important part of development, and deficits in this area have long-term impacts on a child. As a result, clinicians should include a measure of social skills as part of a comprehensive assessment. There are a few well-researched measures of social skills that are currently used, including the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY). The MESSY has been translated and studied internationally in more than nine countries; however, updated norms for the United States have not been conducted since the inception of the measure. The purpose of this article is to examine the psychometric properties of the MESSY using an updated norm sample and age cohorts. Overall results indicated strong internal consistency and good to strong convergent and divergent validity. Psychometric properties for the older age cohorts were stronger and more consistent than those for the 2- to 5-year-olds. This reflects the variability of development and difficulty of assessing social skills at this young age.

Social skills: Differences among adults with intellectual disabilities, co-morbid autism spectrum disorders and epilepsy

Assessing social skills is one of the most complex and challenging areas to study because behavioral repertoires vary depending on an individual's culture and context. However, researchers have conclusively demonstrated that individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) have impaired social skills as well as those with co-morbid autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and epilepsy. However, it is unknown how these groups differ. Assessment of social skills was made with the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Individuals with Severe Retardation. One hundred participants with ID were matched and compared across four equal groups comprising 25 participants with ID, 25 participants with epilepsy, 25 participants with ASD, and 25 participants with combined ASD and epilepsy. When controlling for age, gender, race, level of ID, and hearing and visual impairments, significant differences were found among the four groups on the MESSIER, Wilks's Λ=.58, F(18, 257)=3.05, p<.01. The multivariate η2 based on Wilks's Λ was .17. Significant differences were found on the Positive Verbal subscale, F(3, 96)=3.70, p<.01, η2=.10, Positive Non-verbal subscale, F(3, 96)=8.95, p<.01, η2=.22, General Positive subscale, F(3, 96)=7.30, p<.01, η2=.19, Negative Non-verbal subscale, F(3, 96)=5.30, p<.01, η2=.14, and General Negative subscale, F(3, 96)=3.16, p<.05, η2=.09. Based on these results, individuals with ID expressing combined co-morbid ASD and epilepsy had significantly more impaired social skills than the ID only or groups containing only a single co-morbid factor with ID (ASD or epilepsy only). Implications of these findings are discussed.

Habilidades sociales y estrés infantil

El objetivo del presente trabajo fue evaluar la relación entre estrés infantil y habilidades sociales. Se aplicaron dos inventarios, el primero fue el Inventario de Estrés Infantil (IEI) compuesto por tres áreas; familiar, escolar y social. El segundo evaluó habilidades sociales, la Matson Evaluation of Social Skills in Youngsters (MESSY) para alumnos con cinco áreas, aunque sólo se consideró la de habilidades sociales para este estudio. Participaron 212 niños de 8 a 10 años. Los resultados mostraron relaciones significativas entre estrés alto y habiliddes sociales, pero no entre estrés bajo o nulo y las mismas. Los resultados se discuten a partir de las hipótesis pertinentes y las propiedades métricas de los instrumentos

Evaluation of Depression with Respect to Different Social Skill Levels: a Turkish Study

The aim was to evaluate the level of depression in 12-14-year-old secondary school students with different social skill levels using the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI; Kovacs, 1985) and the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY; Matson, Rotatori, &amp; Helsel, 1983). In order to analyze data, anova, Tukey test, regression analysis and correlation analysis were employed. Results of the study indicated that there was a significant effect of social skills level on depression and students with more positive social behaviors had lower levels of depression, whereas students with negative social behaviors suffered from higher levels of depression. a significant negative relationship between the students' positive social behaviors and depression (r = -.25, p &lt; .001), and a positive relationship between negative social behaviors and depression (r = .28, p &lt; .001) were found.