Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales Research Articles

Examining the structural validity of the teacher-rated SSIS-RS and SSIS SEL scales

ABSTRACT The Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales (SSIS-RS) and the Social Skills Improvement System Social and Emotional Learning Edition (SSIS SEL) are rating scales used to assess social behavior in children and adolescents. While the SSIS-RS is well-regarded and used worldwide, the SSIS SEL is establishing foothold. In the current study, we used confirmatory factor analyses to investigate the structural validity of teacher-reported social skills in both the SSIS-RS and SSIS SEL in a large sample of Norwegian first-grade students (n = 879). Our evaluation indicates that the six-factor SSIS SEL models displayed superior fit compared to the seven-factor structures of SSIS-RS in our data. Results provide evidence of (a) several excessive factor correlations in both structures, (b) a few items overlapping in content, and (c) five items that appeared statistically distinct from the overall concepts of social skills (SSIS-RS) and social and emotional competency (SSIS SEL).

The association between family functioning and problem behaviors among Chinese preschool left-behind children: the chain mediating effect of emotion regulation and psychological resilience.

The family environment has a significant impact on the psychological and behavioral development of children, especially those who are left behind in preschool and experience parent-child separation at a young age. These children face a greater risk of family dysfunction, which can lead to internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors. While numerous studies have established a connection between family functioning and problem behaviors, few have explored the underlying mechanisms driving this relationship. Our study seeks to address this gap by examining how emotion regulation and psychological resilience mediate the link between family functioning and problem behavior. The sample consisted of 940 preschool children (51.5% male, 48.5% female) with a mean age of 5.07 ± 0.80. The main guardians of the children were given the Family Assessment Device, Preschool Children's Emotion Regulation Scale, the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment for Preschoolers (2nd edition), and the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales to assess their family functioning, emotion regulation, psychological resilience, and problem behavior respectively. Lower family functioning was associated with more severe problem behaviors in preschool left-behind children, and emotion regulation and psychological resilience partially mediated the relationship between family functioning and problem behaviors, respectively. In addition, emotion regulation and psychological resilience were also chain mediators between family functioning and problem behaviors. The study's findings highlighted the crucial role of emotional regulation and psychological resilience in the correlation between family functioning and problem behaviors. It is recommended that policymakers and educators place a high priority on the cultivation of internal psychological resources, such as emotional regulation and resilience, in preschool-aged children when designing interventions to address problem behaviors.

Kids these days and kids those days: Investigating perceptions of children's social skills from 1988 to 2007

Behavior rating scales are frequently used assessment tools designed to measure social skills. Use of norm-referenced assessments such as behavior rating scales requires examiners and test publishers to consider when norms become obsolete and norm-referenced scores can no longer be validly interpreted. A fundamental factor influencing norm obsolescence regards changes in baseline levels of targeted traits within the population. Yet, limited research exists regarding how social skills may change at a population level over time as measured by established assessment tools. Thus, the present study investigates population trends in social skills of K–12 children as rated by parents, teachers, and students by concordantly linking the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS; nparent = 833, nteacher = 1215, nstudent = 4105) and the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales (SSIS-RS; nparent = 2400, nteacher = 750, nstudent = 800) using validity samples collected during the development of the SSIS-RS (nparent = 240, nteacher = 221, nstudent = 224). Analyses evaluated differences between ratings on the standardization data from 1988 and 2007 by informant, sex, grade level, and sex by grade level. After applying linear linking techniques, we conducted a series of statistical comparisons that revealed a general upward trend of ratings for the 2007 sample compared to the 1988 sample, with important differences across sex, grade level, and informant. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of these findings for consideration and assessment of children's social skills.

Exploratory factor analysis of the social skills improvement system (SSIS) for autistic children: Implications for use and educational placement

BackgroundThe Social Skills Improvement System Rating Scales (SSIS-RS) evaluates three domains of social functioning: social skills, problem behaviors, and academic competence. The SSIS-RS is a widely used social skills assessment for autistic children, but the validity of this measure for use with this heterogeneous population has yet to be confirmed. Using data from a previous large-scale investigation by the National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorder, this study explored the factor structure of the SSIS-RS, examined how autistic children were rated using the SSIS-RS, and evaluated how scores on the SSIS-RS were related to special education placement. MethodConfirmatory and Exploratory Factor Analysis examined the factor structure of the SSIS-RS for a sample of 492 autistic children, ages four to 12. An independent samples t-test using subscale scores of the SSIS-RS was conducted to evaluate differences between autistic children learning in different educational settings. ResultsResults of the EFA yielded a 4-factor solution and support the internal validity of the SSIS-RS. Subscale scores for social skills, problem behavior, and academic competence differed significantly between students in general and separate settings with academic performance scores differing much less than social skills or behavior. ConclusionThis study examines strengths and weaknesses of the SSIS-RS as a tool for assessing autistic children through discussion of items removed from and retained in the model. Discussion of results includes implications for teacher interpretations of SSIS-RS scores, recommendations for modifications to the measure, and insights about educational placement and inclusive programming.

The Relation Between Preschoolers’ Cognitive Distraction Strategies and Problem Behaviors: Social Skills as a Mediator and Delay of Gratification as a Moderator

This study aims to investigate the relation between preschoolers’ social skills as a mediator and delay of gratification as a moderator, and their cognitive distraction strategies and problem behaviors. The participants of this study were 100 randomly selected preschoolers aged 3 to 5 years, who were attending a private preschool in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. Data was obtained through Marshmallow Test to evaluate cognitive distraction strategies with regard to delay of gratification, and the Social Skills Improvement System Rating Scales (SSIR-RS) to assess the preschoolers’ social skills and problem behaviors. The obtained data was analyzed with correlation analysis and mediator variable analysis. The findings revealed that preschoolers’ cognitive distraction strategies, social skills, and problem behaviors are significantly correlated. Besides, as problem behaviors of the preschoolers increased, their use of social skills and cognitive distraction strategies decreased. Furthermore, it was determined that cognitive distraction strategies were a significant predictor of problem behaviors. Finally, it was concluded that social skills had a mediating role in the relationship between preschoolers’ cognitive distraction strategies and their problem behaviors. These findings highlight possible interventions to boost children’s development by enhancing their social skills and cognitive distraction strategies, as well as reducing problem behaviors.

Multi-Informant Assessment of Adolescents' Social-Emotional Skills: Patterns of Agreement and Discrepancy among Teachers, Parents, and Students.

Objectives: This study explores the patterns of agreement and discrepancy among informants (teachers, parents, and students) in the domains of the Social Emotional Skills Scale Assessment System—Social Skills Scales (SESAS-SS), which is a translation of the Social Skills Improvement System—Rating Scales (SSIS-RS) for use in Spain. Methods: The sample is composed of students, 88 teachers, and 98 parents from Spanish secondary schools. Inter-rater agreements have been assessed, calculating the Pearson correlation coefficients among pairs of raters, effect size indices, and intraclass correlation coefficients at the subscale and total scale level. Results: The convergent validity coefficients were stronger than the divergent ones, with the highest level of agreement between teachers and parents in social skills, particularly for total social skills, engagement, empathy, and communication. The patterns of discrepancies confirmed weaker agreements between teachers and parents in self-control and between parents and students in empathy. Significant differences were also found in students’ estimates depending on gender. Conclusions: The SESAS-SS provides support for previous studies on inter-rater agreements for SS, extending the focus on the degree of agreement in the estimate of dyads of raters when considering the students’ gender.

Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills for adolescents with an acquired brain injury: A randomized controlled trial

To test the efficacy of a group social skills intervention on social functioning in adolescents with a brain injury. Thirty-six adolescents (mean age 14y, SD 1y 8mo, age range 12y 1mo-16y 3mo; 17 females) with acquired brain injury (ABI; ≥12mo postintervention; n=19) or cerebral palsy (n=17) were randomly allocated to the Program for the Education in Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS) or usual care. The primary outcome was the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales (SSIS-RS). Secondary outcomes were scores derived from the Test of Adolescent Social Skills Knowledge-Revised (TASSK-R), Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition, and Quality of Socialization Questionnaire. Between-group differences postintervention and at the 26-week retention time point were compared using linear mixed modelling for continuous outcomes and Poisson regression for count data. There were no between-group differences on the primary outcome (SSIS-RS). Regarding the secondary outcomes, the PEERS-exposed group achieved significantly greater improvements on the TASSK-R (mean difference [MD]=6.8, 95% confidence interval [CI]=4.8-8.8, p<0.001), which were maintained at the 26-week retention time point (MD=8.1, 95% CI=6.0-10.2, p<0.001). PEERS was also associated with a significant increase in parent-reported invited get-togethers at 26 weeks (incidence rate ratio=4.0, 95% CI=1.0-16.0, p=0.05). Adolescents with brain injury who completed the PEERS learned and retained social knowledge and increased social participation.

The Association between Externalizing and Internalizing Problems with Bullying Engagement in Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Social Skills.

Bullying has severe public health consequences, due to its high prevalence worldwide and devastating effects on physical and mental health. Therefore, it is relevant to further understand the factors that contribute to the emergence and maintenance of bullying. This study aimed to examine the differential mediating role of social skills in the relationship between (i) externalizing problems and engagement in aggressive bullying behaviors, and (ii) internalizing problems and the engagement in victimization bullying behaviors. Participants were 669 Portuguese adolescents aged between 12 and 19 years. The Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales and the Scale of Interpersonal Behavior at School were used to assess social skills and the engagement in bullying behaviors, respectively. Boys scored higher on aggressive behaviors and externalizing problems. Girls reported higher scores on internalizing problems, communication, cooperation and empathy. Social skills differently mediated the association between behavior problems and engagement in bullying. While empathy negatively mediated the association between externalizing problems and aggressive bullying behaviors, assertiveness negatively mediated the relationship between internalizing problems and victimization bullying behaviors. The risk factors for engaging in bullying are discussed, and so are the protective ones, which may help to prevent bullying behaviors and reduce their negative impact.

A Longitudinal Examination of Language Skills, Social Skills, and Behavior Problems of Preschool Children From Low-Income Families

We examined the relations between language skills and behavior problems and whether social skills mediated these relations among preschool children enrolled in Head Start programs. Participants included 242 preschool children and their parents in Head Start programs. Over a 2-year period, parents and teachers reported children’s behavior problems using the Child Behavior Checklist Ages 1½-5, and social skills using the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales. Children’s expressive and receptive language skills were assessed individually using the Preschool Language Scale-5. Results suggested that children’s early receptive language predicted later teacher-reported child internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Social skills did not mediate associations between language skills and parent- or teacher-reported child behavior problems.

Social skills and autism spectrum disorder symptoms in children with neurofibromatosis type 1: evidence for clinical trial outcomes.

We examined key features of two outcome measures for social dysfunction and autism spectrum disorder traits, the Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition (SRS-2) and the Social Skills Improvement System - Rating Scales (SSIS-RS), in children with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). The aim of the study was to provide objective evidence as to which behavioural endpoint should be used in clinical trials. Cross-sectional behavioural and demographic data were pooled from four paediatric NF1 tertiary referral centres in Australia and the United States (N=122; 65 males, 57 females; mean age [SD] 9y 2mo [3y], range 3-15y). Distributions of SRS-2 and SSIS-RS scores were unimodal and both yielded deficits, with a higher proportion of severely impaired scores on the SRS-2 (16.4%) compared to the SSIS-RS (8.2%). Pearson's product-moment correlations revealed that both questionnaires were highly related to each other (r=-0.72, p<0.001) and to measures of adaptive social functioning (both p<0.001). Both questionnaires were significantly related to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms, but only very weakly associated with intelligence. The SRS-2 and SSIS-RS capture social dysfunction associated with NF1, suggesting both may be suitable choices for assessing social outcomes in this population in a clinical trial. However, careful thought needs to be given to the nature of the intervention when selecting either as a primary endpoint. The Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition yielded a large deficit relative to population norms. The Social Skills Improvement System - Rating Scales yielded a moderate deficit relative to population norms. Both scales were highly correlated, suggesting that they are measuring a unitary construct.

A validation of the Social Skills domain of the Social Skills Improvement System‐Rating Scales with Chinese preschoolers

AbstractThe study explored the validity of the Social Skills Improvement System‐Rating Scales (SSIS‐RS) in a sample of over 4,000 preschool children (aged 3–5 years old) in China. Multiple approaches were used to examine the validity of SSIS‐RS in the Chinese cultural context, including confirmatory factor analysis, convergent and discriminant validity evidence with external measures of learning and developmental outcomes, and internal consistency reliability estimates. The findings supported the SSIS‐RS 7‐factor structure (i.e., communication, cooperation, assertion, engagement, responsibility, empathy, and self‐control) when applied in the Chinese context, and provided strong empirical evidence that SSIS‐RS is a psychometrically sound measure for assessing the social skills of Chinese children. The latent profile analysis was used to provide a descriptive picture of the patterns of different social skills measured by SSIS‐RS among Chinese preschool children. Four classes best described the social skills presentations of children in this study: Lowest Social Skills (14%), Relatively Low Social Skills (41%), Relatively High Social skills (35%), and Highest Social Skills (10%). Implications for intervention practice and future research are discussed.

Reflexión y construcción del conocimiento en torno a las habilidades sociales y la competencia social

Este trabajo aborda el estado del conocimiento de las habilidades sociales y la competencia social. Es una síntesis del proceso de investigación desarrollado en la tesis doctoral: “Adaptación del Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales al contexto español en las etapas de Educación Infantil y Educación Primaria” (Losada, 2015). El propósito de este artículo es aportar una construcción de conocimiento teórico de los conceptos competencia social, habilidades sociales y asertividad, por sus implicaciones en el desarrollo de las habilidades sociales en la escuela y su utilidad en la evaluación y la intervención educativas. También, se presenta un recorrido histórico en cuanto al origen del estudio científico y sistemático de las habilidades sociales y revisa el significado del concepto habilidades sociales, y su relación con otros afines. Finalmente, se presentan sus implicaciones en el ámbito escolar y los beneficiosos efectos de la intervención educativa en el ajuste escolar y en el éxito académico.

Discrepancies in parent and teacher ratings of low-income preschooler's social skills

ABSTRACTParent–teacher rating discrepancies in rating of children's social skills were examined in a low-income, ethnically diverse preschool sample, using the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales [Gresham, F. M., & Elliott, S. N. (2008). Social Skills Improvement System – Rating Scales. Minneapolis, MN: Pearson Assessments]. Participants included 663 preschool children (326 male, 336 female, M = 3.51 years, SD = 0.50) rated in the Fall of their preschool year. Children were drawn from 68 classrooms in 13 preschool sites. The results indicated that mean parent ratings were significantly greater than mean teacher ratings for the Social Skills Scale. The mean parent–teacher ratings were not significantly different for the Problem Behaviours Scale. Follow-up analyses indicated that parent–teacher ratings differed across six of the seven Social Skills sub-scales. These differences were significantly associated with family income. Implications for parents, teachers, and educational policy are explored.

Habilidades sociales y éxito académico: expectativas de los profesores de educación secundaria-Social skills and academic achievement: secondary teacher expectations

ABSTRACTUnderstanding which Social Skills are considered very important by Secondary Education Teachers for the academic achievement of their students for the would provide proposals for effective actions to improve the responsiveness of the student to specific demands from educational contexts, decreasing their vulnerability in case they had to face with risky situations. In a sample of 198 teachers belonging from public, private and charter schools, Social Skills, which were considered as critical by the Social Skills Improvement System –Rating Scales (SSIS-RS) has been analyzed by performing statistical analysis as Test of Chi-Square, Medium, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney, as well as the significance of the relationship between teacher characteristics and those Social Skills. It is confirmed that in Secondary Education there is not any Social Skill which is considered as “not important” for academic achievement by teachers. Every Skill is significantly critical, resulting from the most to the least important, Cooperation, Responsibility, Engagement, Assertion, Communication, Self-Control and Empathy. Regarding other studies, it highlights to be higher estimated Assertion than Self-Control, probably for cultural reasons. And very low differences in Social Skills according with the teacher´s educational stage (E.S.O., Bachillerato, Formacion Profesional) and years of teaching experience. There are some differences in accordance with their gender –female teachers give more value to Communication, Assertion, Self-Control and Engagement-. Implications, limitations of the study and future researches are discussed.

Comparability of the Social Skills Improvement System to the Social Skills Rating System: A Norwegian Study

The Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales (SSIS-RS) is a multi-informant instrument assessing social skills and problem behavior in children and adolescents. It is a revised version of the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS). A Norwegian translation of the SSRS has been validated, but this has not yet been done for the Norwegian translation of the SSIS-RS. This study compared the Norwegian versions of the SSRS and the SSIS-RS administered to samples of children (aged 8–12 and 13–16 years) and their parents and teachers (n = 599). The results indicated moderate to strong relations between the common subscales across all forms of the two instruments and acceptable to excellent internal consistency across all common subscales. We conclude that the SSIS-RS is a good instrument for measuring social skills and problem behavior among children and adolescents in Norway.

Social Skills Intervention Planning for Preschoolers

Teachers’ and parents’ importance ratings of social behaviors for 95 preschoolers were examined using the Social Skills Improvement System–Rating Scales (Gresham &amp; Elliott, 2008). Multivariate analyses were used to examine parents’ and teachers’ importance ratings at the item and subscale levels. Overall, parents assigned significantly higher importance ratings than teachers assigned on each of the seven assessed social skills domains: communication, cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, engagement, and self-control. Parents and teachers rated responsibility and cooperation as the most critical skill domains for preschoolers. At the item level, parents and teachers agreed on 4 of their top 10 critical items. The potential value of including parent and teacher importance ratings in planning interventions across home and school is discussed.

Preschoolers’ Social Skills: Advances in Assessment for Intervention Using Social Behavior Ratings

Social skills play an important role in young children’s successes in and outside of school. For two decades, educators have used the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS; Gresham & Elliott, 1990) as a tool for describing children’s social behaviors and for planning interventions to improve social skills. Although widely used, some researchers have criticized certain aspects of the preschool version of the SSRS. In 2008, a revision of the instrument, the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales (SSiS-RS; Gresham & Elliott), was published. In this article, we examine the development of the preschool versions of SSRS and SSiS-RS and provide a comparison of the two rating systems, focusing on the content, structure, psychometric properties, and intended use of the instruments. We then describe the SSiS-RS within an assessment for intervention model. We conclude that the SSiS-RS is an improved assessment instrument over the preschool SSRS and provide recommendations for future studies that will contribute to the evolving validity evidence for the resulting scores and decisions made from them.

Comparability of the Social Skills Rating System to the Social Skills Improvement System: Content and psychometric comparisons across elementary and secondary age levels.

University of WashingtonThis study compared the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS; Gresham & Elliott, 1990)with the revision of the SSRS, now called the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales (SSIS-RS; Gresham & Elliott, 2008), across three raters (teacher, parent,and student) for elementary- and secondary-aged students. A detailed comparison ofthese two instruments’ comparability has not been previously reported and was con-sidered important because of the frequent use of the SSRS in many externally fundedresearch studies and school districts across the country. Comparisons between the twoinstruments focused on key reliability and validity estimates across the rating scales forthree raters (teacher, parent, and student) using forms for elementary- and secondary-aged students. As hypothesized, the two instruments had high internal consistencyestimates and moderately high validity indices for total scores for both social skills andproblem behavior scales. The reliability comparisons revealed the SSIS-RS was supe-rior to the SSRS with regard to internal consistency estimates. The validity estimatesrevealed expected convergent relationships with the strongest relationships consistentlyfound among the various common subscales across all forms of the two instruments.The authors concluded that the SSIS-RS offers researchers and practitioners assessingsocial behavior of children and youth a broader conceptualization of key socialbehaviors and psychometrically superior assessment results when using the SSIS-RSover the SSRS. Future research on the SSIS-RS is also identi ed and contextualizedwithin a multitiered intervention system.Keywords:

Cross-informant agreement for ratings for social skill and problem behavior ratings: An investigation of the Social Skills Improvement System—Rating Scales.

One of the most consistent findings in rating scale research with children and adolescents is the modest agreement among different informants' ratings. The present study systematically explored patterns of agreement among teachers, parents/caregivers, and students in domains of social skills and problem behaviors using the Social Skills Improvement System-Rating Scales (SSIS-RS; F. M. Gresham & S. N. Elliott, 2008). Two subsamples from the normative sample of the SSIS-RS were used. The first sample of participants consisted of 168 students who had all 3 informants (parent, teacher, and self) complete the SSIS-RS scales, which was necessary to assess agreement across different raters. The second sample consisted of 164 students who had raters in a similar or same role (father-mother, teacher-teacher). The results replicated an extensive literature showing that cross-informant agreements for social skills and problem behaviors are weak to moderate. The current study invoked multitrait-multimethod logic to interpret the correlations among raters derived from different informants and showed that the convergent validity coefficients were consistently stronger than the discriminant validity correlations. Implications for assessment practices and future research are discussed.