This study used item response theory (IRT) to derive sets of maximally efficient items (SMI) for a brief behavior rating scale (BBRS) from a common universal screening tool (i.e., the Social, Academic, and Emotional Behavior Risk Screener--Student Rating Scale [mySAEBRS]). We also evaluated the change sensitivity of these items for potential use…

The relevance of the study is conditioned by the development of civil society and legal state, which are characterized by the observance of and respect for the rights and freedoms of man and citizen, a recognition of individual freedom and the values of each person. The purpose of this article is to develop practical recommendations on formation…

Empirical studies have documented a variety of social abnormalities in infancy that indicate risk for later social and behavioral difficulties. There is very little research illustrating the presence of such behavioral vulnerabilities with frequent repeated measures, and the feasibility of designing interventions for improving social engagement in…

"Social skills training" is not a specific curriculum, but rather a collection of practices that use a behavioral approach for teaching preschool children age-appropriate social skills and competencies, including communication, problem solving, decision making, self-management, and peer relations. "Social skills training" can…

"Strong Start K-2" is a social-emotional learning curriculum, designed for use with children in kindergarten through grade 2. The objectives of this study were twofold. First, authors aimed to evaluate the feasibility and quality of "Strong Start" implementation. Additionally authors examined the effect of "Strong Start" on first grade students'…

The social vulnerabilities associated with young children with autism are recognized as important intervention targets due to their influence on subsequent development. Current research suggests that interventions that combine motivational and social components can create meaningful changes in social functioning. Simultaneously, it is hypothesized…

Recent research has demonstrated that social responsiveness (comprised of social awareness, social information processing, reciprocal social communication, social motivation, and repetitive/restricted interests) is continuously distributed within the general population. In the present study, we consider temperament as a co-occurring source of…

The association among mothers', fathers', and infants' risk and cognitive and social behaviors at 24 months was examined using structual equation modeling and data on 4,200 on toddlers and their parents from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort. There were 3 main findings. First, for cognitive outcomes, maternal risk was directly…

This study examined the effects of two social skills interventions, Sociodramatic Affective Relational Intervention (SDARI) and Skillstreaming, to compare their treatment mechanisms, social performance- and knowledge-training. A total of 13 youth with autism spectrum disorders were randomly assigned to 4 weeks of 1-day/week SDARI or…

Children with autism often exhibit low levels of social engagement, decreased levels of eye contact, and low social affect. However, both the literature and our direct clinical observations suggest that some components of intervention procedures may result in improvement in child-initiated social areas. Using an ABAB research design with three…

Examined how aspects of social-emotional learning (SEL)--specifically, emotion knowledge, emotional and social behaviors, social problem-solving, and self-regulation--clustered to typify groups of children who differ in terms of their motivation to learn, participation in the classroom, and other indices of early school adjustment and academic…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the agreement between parent and teacher perceptions of specific social behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Method: Informant ratings were generated concerning 45 children with ASD between the ages of 5 and 14 years who were enrolled in social skills groups at 2 Midwestern…

The Child Development & Behavior (CDB) Branch of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) seeks to improve the health and well-being of individuals from infancy through early adulthood by supporting research into healthy growth and development, including all aspects of child development. The study of typical child…

Examined relations of children's regulation and emotionality to their social functioning. Found that resiliency mediated effects of individual differences in attentional regulation on social status and socially appropriate behavior, and that negative emotionality moderated the positive relation between attentional control and resiliency. Also…

Investigated the content and development of children's imitative behavior in the home. The data consisted of incidents of naturally occurring imitations of 24 children 16 and 29 months of age collected over a four-month period by mothers trained in observational recording. Immediate imitations decreased with age; deferred imitations increased with…