Lecture 9: Intervention for Social Communication

Question 1

What three things make up social communication skills?

Answer 1

• social problem solving
• pragmatics
• social cognition

Question 2

What do children with ASD have difficulty with?

Answer 2

• initiating interactions
• sustaining interactions
• maintaining reciprocity
• sharing enjoyment
• taking another person’s perspective
• inferring the interests of others

Question 3

What are the three types of deficits, and what do they mean?

Answer 3

• skill acquisition deficit: lack the skill
• performance deficit: have the skills but either don’t use it, or use it wrong
• fluency deficit: try to use the skills but it’s awkward

Question 4

What are some strategies that work for intervention?

Answer 4

• role play
• modeling/guided practice
• reinforcement
• performance feedback, self-evaluation

Question 5

Explain the Model for Classroom-Based Intervention.

Answer 5

• Good communicators LISTEN (eye-contact, active listening, asking questions)
• Good communicators GREET THEIR FRIENDS
• Good communicators GIVE and RECEIVE COMPLIMENTS

Question 6

Explain the difference between shyness and selective mutism.

Answer 6

SHYNESS: slow warm-up period, can respond with nod or smile, same demeanor everywhere

SM: warm-up much longer than expected, cannot respond at all (‘frozen’), often a dual communicative personality (talk at home, not at school), interferes with the child’s ability to function

Question 7

What does treatment for SM focus on?

Answer 7

• alleviating anxiety
• increasing self-esteem
• communicating in social settings
• not expecting the child to talk

Question 8

What is the most commonly used treatment for SM?

Answer 8

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

Question 9

What are the 5 stages of SM?

Answer 9

• Stage 0: Non-communicative
• Stage 1: Non-verbal communication
• Stage 2: Transition to verbal communication
• Stage 3: Verbal communication
• Stage 4: Age-appropriate verbal communication

Question 10

Explain Stage 0

Answer 10

• no responding or initiating
• stiff, expressionless, frozen
• child may sense they are unsafe or in new surroundings

Question 11

Explain Stage 1

Answer 11

• responding (pointing, nodding, waving)

- initiating (pulling, tugging, passing note)

Question 12

Explain Stage 2

Answer 12

• responding and initiating (sounds, animal noises, may have a whisper buddy)

Question 13

Explain Stage 3

Answer 13

• responding/initiating (baby talk, soft whispering, will say rehearsed speech)

Question 14

Explain Stage 4

Answer 14

NORMAL

Question 15

Explain treatment for Stage 0

Answer 15

• use small environment with few people

- roll ball, take turns colouring, etc.

Question 16

Explain treatment for Stage 1

Answer 16

• Responding: show note cards with YES or NO when answering, nod or shake head, etc.
• Initiating: “clockwatcher”, taking attendance, etc.

Question 17

Explain treatment for Stage 2

Answer 17

• record at home and play at school
• use verbal intermediary or talk through puppets
• look in direction of person
• whisper at different lengths
• use initial sounds (nnnn for no)

Question 18

Explain treatment for Stage 3

Answer 18

• baby can be a manifestation of their anxiety (look past it until it passes, or use social story to talk through it)