Social-pragmatic Skills Research Articles

TeleRehabilitation of Social-Pragmatic Skills in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Principal Component Analysis.

In many therapeutic settings, remote health services are becoming increasingly a viable strategy for behavior management interventions in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, there is a paucity of tools for recovering social-pragmatic skills. In this study, we sought to demonstrate the effectiveness of a new online behavioral training, comparing the performance of an ASD group carrying out an online treatment (n°8) with respect to a control group of demographically-/clinically matched ASD children (n°8) engaged in a traditional in-presence intervention (face-to-face). After a 4-month behavioral treatment, the pragmatic skills language (APL test) abilities detected in the experimental group were almost similar to the control group. However, principal component analysis (PCA) demonstrated that the overall improvement in socio-pragmatic skills was higher for ASD children who underwent in-presence training. In fact, dimensions defined by merging APL subscale scores are clearly separated in ASD children who underwent in-presence training with respect to those performing the online approach. Our findings support the effectiveness of remote healthcare systems in managing the social skills of children with ASD, but more approaches and resources are required to enhance remote services.

Social-Pragmatic Skills and Length of Bilingualism Predict Inhibitory Control in Children.

There is conflicting evidence regarding effects of bilingualism on inhibition, and the mechanisms that might underlie the effects remain unclear. A prominent account views additional demands on structural language use in bilinguals as being at the root of bilingual effects on inhibition. In this study, we tested the novel hypothesis that social-pragmatic skills (alone or together with structural language skills) are associated with inhibition in bilingual children. Parents of 114 typically developing 8- to 11-year-old Spanish-English bilingual children completed the Children's Communication Checklist-Second Edition to index social pragmatics and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function to index executive functioning skills. The Inhibit clinical scale score reflected children's inhibition. Children's language ability was indexed by the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Fourth Edition in English and Spanish. Length of bilingualism was operationalized continuously as the length of time children had been exposed to both languages in their lifetime. Moderation analyses tested the effects of structural language, social-pragmatic skills, and length of bilingual experience, and their interactions on inhibition. While structural language skills were not associated with inhibition, they moderated the relation between social-pragmatic skills and inhibition, such that children with better social-pragmatic skills demonstrated better inhibition, and this effect was stronger for children with better structural language skills. Furthermore, longer length of bilingual experience was associated with better inhibition, and this effect was not moderated by any other predictor. These results confirm a graded relationship between bilingualism and inhibition, and indicate that this association is not qualified by structural language or social-pragmatic skills. https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.21183916.

Prevalence and functional impact of social (pragmatic) communication disorders.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the Children's Communication Checklist-2 (CCC-2) for measuring social-pragmatic communication deficits and to ascertain their prevalence and functional impact in a community sample. We used parent and teacher responses to the CCC-2 to approximate inclusion (poor social-pragmatic skills) and exclusion (poor structural language skills or autistic symptomatology) criteria for social (pragmatic) communication disorder (SPCD). We tested the prevalence of social-pragmatic deficits in a population-based sample of children (n = 386) aged 5-6 years old using CCC-2 algorithms. We also investigated the academic and behavioural profiles of children with broadly defined limitations in social-pragmatic competence on the CCC-2. Regardless of the diagnostic algorithm used, the resulting prevalence rates for social-pragmatic deficits indicated that very few children had isolated social-communication difficulties (0-1.3%). However, a larger proportion of children (range: 6.1-10.5%) had social-pragmatic skills outside the expected range alongside structural language difficulties and/or autism spectrum symptoms, and this profile was associated with a range of adverse academic and behavioural outcomes. A considerable proportion of children in the early years of primary school has social-pragmatic deficits that interfere with behaviour and scholastic activity; however, these rarely occur in isolation. Exclusionary criteria that include structural language may lead to underidentification of individuals with social-pragmatic deficits that may benefit from tailored support and intervention.

Use of the Children's Communication Checklist-2 in School-Aged Students with Autism: A Psychometric Analysis.

Measurement of social-pragmatic communication skills is essential for clinicians and researchers working with school-aged children on the autism spectrum. Many measures of these skills require time-intensive training and coding that is impractical for clinical assessment settings. Using a sample of 299 elementary school children (M = 8.6years, sd = 1.7) with autism whose teachers completed the Children's Communication Checklist-2, we evaluated the psychometric properties of the CCC-2, a commonly used measure of social-pragmatic skills in order to assist researchers and clinicians in identifying the utility of this measure related to their assessment needs. Our results indicate strong psychometric properties for the CCC-2 with this population and a 3-factor model fit: Structural Language, Pragmatic Communication, and Pragmatic Social. Evidence of racial/ethnic bias was found for the structural language factor. Clinical recommendations are provided for using the CCC-2 with students with autism as reported by teachers.

Comparison of Adaptive Functioning in Children with Williams Beuren Syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Cross-Syndrome Study.

Williams Beuren syndrome (WBS) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been long considered as "polar opposite" disorders. Although children with WBS appears to be hypersociable, recent researches have revealed difficulties in socio-communicative skills such as shared attention, showing or giving objects, social relationships comprehension, pragmatic use of language, and emotion's recognition. The aim of this cross-syndrome study is to compare clinician-report adaptive profiles of two wide developmental range children by means of Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-Interview Edition, Survey Form. Eighty individuals, 40 with WBS and 40 with ASD (31 preschoolers and 49 scholars) with ASD and WBS matched for chronological age and developmental/cognitive level were recruited. Analysis of domains and subdomains have been reported. Results showed no significant difference in global adaptive level between WBS and ASD in both preschooler and scholar children. Communication domain significantly differ in preschoolers (higher in WBS children), but not in scholars. Expressive subdomain significantly differ in both preschoolers and scholars (higher in WBS children). Play and Leisure subdomain significantly differ in scholars (higher in WBS children), but not in preschoolers. Our results support hypothesis on a shared global adaptive impairment in children with WBS and ASD, by extending this findings to scholar-age children. Analysis of domains and subdomains differences highlight the need for interventions targeting social-pragmatic skills since first years of life. Differences in preschoolers and scholars adaptive profiles could be explained through a developmental perspective. LAY SUMMARY: Little is known about differences in adaptive profiles between Williams Beuren syndrome and autism spectrum disorder. Our results show similarities in global adaptive level and difference in communication level. Furthermore, expressive skills seem to be higher in Williams Beuren Syndrome. Autism Res 2021, 14: 748-758. © 2020 International Society for Autism Research and Wiley Periodicals LLC.

Brief Report: A Job-Based Social Skills Program (JOBSS) for Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

Adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have low employment rates; even those who are employed have low wages and limited hours. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the Job-Based Social Skills (JOBSS) curriculum, a manualized, 15-week, group-delivered intervention for adults with ASD. The intervention aimed to increase social-pragmatic skills necessary to obtain and maintain employment. Twenty-two adults were randomly assigned to either JOBSS intervention or wait-list control groups. Results showed significant improvement in social cognition, as reported by caregivers, among JOBSS group participants compared to wait-list control participants. Forty-five percent of intervention participants gained employment in the six months following participation. This curriculum has potential to improve social skills of adults with ASD, thereby increasing successful employment.

An unconventional path to greater social-communication skills and independence for an adolescent on the autism spectrum

Background In 2015, a father took his 14-year-old son who is on the autism spectrum on a six-month journey aimed to develop his son’s social-communication and independent living skills. The duo travelled across 10 countries, meeting people and practising these skills. This study examined their goals, motivations for, and outcomes of the journey. Method We used intrinsic case study methodology with mixed methods, including interviews with parents and professionals; analyses of filmed interactions between the son, his father and strangers during the journey; and descriptive analysis of parent-reported changes in their son’s participation at home, school and in the community using the Participation and Environment Measure – Children and Youth. Results Qualitative analysis of the interviews with parents and professionals revealed a set of insightful goals and motivations, focusing on creating an optimal environment for the son’s development. Parents reported increases in their son’s social-communication and independent living skills, but also unexpected changes in his perspective and self-belief. The former findings were consistent with those arising from video analysis, whereby social-pragmatic skills critical to good conversations (staying on topic, body position, eye contact) all increased over the course of the journey, while abrupt topic changes and conversational prompts reduced. Participation and inclusion across home, school and community settings all increased over the same period. Conclusion While this study makes no claims regarding causation, the findings indicate that the journey was associated with positive changes for the son and his parents, leading to greater expectations for, and progress towards, independence following the journey. Implications of the findings for supporting young people on the autism spectrum in regular community settings are discussed.

Interview Skills for Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the efficacy of the interview skills curriculum (ISC), a manualized 12-week group-delivered intervention for young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This intervention aims to increase social-pragmatic skills essential to a successful job interview. Twenty-eight adults (18-36 years) were randomly assigned to one of two groups: ISC or waitlist control. Results revealed that the experimental group showed larger gains in social-pragmatic skills observed during a mock job interview than the control group. Treatment effects on distal outcomes, including social adaptive behaviors and depressive symptoms were not significant, although the respective effect sizes were medium/large. Results indicate that a brief, low-intensity treatment can improve the job-interview performance of young adults with ASD.

Personal Narratives in Individuals with High-Functioning ASD: A Lens Into Social Skills

Narrative assessment is a valid means for evaluating social pragmatic skills in high-functioning individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) typically analyze fictional narratives because of their strong association with school success. A review of literature suggests that high-functioning individuals with ASD have more difficulties telling personal narratives than fictional narrative. Because problems telling personal narratives may negatively impact social relationships, we suggest evaluating personal narratives to aide intervention planning. We review the elicitation and analysis procedure for personal narratives described in McCabe & Rollins (1994) and make suggestions for intervention.

Mutual exclusivity in autism spectrum disorders: Testing the pragmatic hypothesis

While there is ample evidence that children treat words as mutually exclusive, the cognitive basis of this bias is widely debated. We focus on the distinction between pragmatic and lexical constraints accounts. High-functioning children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) offer a unique perspective on this debate, as they acquire substantial vocabularies despite impoverished social-pragmatic skills. We tested children and adolescents with ASD in a paradigm examining mutual exclusivity for words and facts. Words were interpreted contrastively more often than facts. Word performance was associated with vocabulary size; fact performance was associated with social-communication skills. Thus mutual exclusivity does not appear to be driven by pragmatics, suggesting that it is either a lexical constraint or a reflection of domain-general learning processes.

A Multicomponent Intervention to Increase Peer-Directed Communication in Head Start Children

The effects of a multicomponent intervention strategy to increase peer-directed social communication in eight Head Start children at risk for poor language and social skill development were examined. The intervention consisted of three components: (a) a planning period, including reading a storybook that illustrated the play theme and use of the social pragmatic communication strategies, practice using vocabulary to be used in play, and choosing roles for the thematic activity; (b) a 10-min play session in which the interventionist coached children to interact while they played with the thematic related toys; and (c) a brief reporting period in which children reviewed their use of the social pragmatic strategies and specific vocabulary. A multiple-baseline design across dyads with pre- and postgeneralization probes was employed. Children increased their use of peer-directed communication over baseline levels, target vocabulary words, and other social pragmatic skills.