The purpose of this paper was to summarize the implementation of a schoolwide tiered intervention program in three Midwestern U.S. elementary schools over a period of three years. The program, Social Skills Training and Aggression Reduction Techniques plus Time-Away (START[superscript Plus]) includes components of social skills training at the…

A variety of activities are used in camps to help promote positive youth development, improving social skills and self-esteem in campers. I expanded on previous camp research in this study to address the influence camps have on trust, belief in the honesty of others, empowerment, and care for others in youth in Eastern Europe. Since 1999, New…

This mixed methods study investigates learning outcomes resulting from college attendance in the Chinese mainland. Data for this study is derived from undergraduate survey responses at 21 universities and interviews with 64 seniors at five universities. Factor analysis reduced learning outcome items to two factors, and 19 categories of learning…

This paper aims to shed light on the level of social acceptance among students with learning disabilities (LD) in various secondary school vocational programs in comparison with their peers without disabilities. Our findings are based on an empirical study that comprised 417 students, of whom 85 were students with LD. Based on sociometric analyses…

Implementation of social skills deemed appropriate for use in school is important for student success. Students with emotional and behavioral disorders often fail to use these social skills, requiring intervention to facilitate their use. Results related to social skills interventions have been mixed; one suggested reason for this is the lack of…

Perceived psychosocial abilities (i.e., competence in addressing the psychosocial aspects of patient care) and low frustration tolerance (LFT) (i.e., intolerance of physical or emotional discomfort) have been established as significant attributes of experienced medical professionals. We aimed to expand our understanding of the role motivation…

Bullying or any aggressive behavior of a more powerful person or group toward a less powerful person is a widespread problem in the U.S. educational system. While bullying is a significant problem for all students, students with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have a particularly high incidence rate of becoming victims of bullying. The social…

This study assessed the effects of a best friend's facial attractiveness on first impressions of medium-attractive children and early adolescents. Younger (N = 114, 48 boys and 66 girls, M[subscript age] = 8.16 years) and older (N = 168, 83 boys and 85 girls, M[subscript age] = 12.32 years) participants rated photos of unknown medium-attractive…

Abnormal functioning of primary brain systems that express and modulate basic emotional drives are increasingly considered to underlie mental disorders including autism spectrum disorders. We hypothesized that ASD are characterized by disruptions in the primary systems involved in the motivation for social bonding. Twenty adults with ASD were…

A cross-sectional analysis was used to examine age-related differences in ASD symptoms and corresponding differences in disruptive behavior and social skills in 281 adult men with fragile X syndrome. Four age groups were created: 18-21, 22-29, 30-39, and 40-49 years. The 18-21 year-old group was reported to have more impairments in verbal…

A wait-list control experimental design was employed to investigate the effectiveness of a fundamental motor skill intervention at improving the motor skills, adaptive behavior, and social skills of 4-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder (experimental n?=?5, control n?=?4); the impact of intervention intensity was also explored. The…

Mother-child interactions in 22q11.2 Deletion syndrome (22q11.2DS) and Williams syndrome (WS) were coded for maternal sensitivity/intrusiveness, child's expression of affect, levels of engagement, and dyadic reciprocity. WS children were found to express more positive emotions towards their mothers compared to 22q11.2DS children and those with…

Youth who lose their ASD diagnosis may have subtle social and communication difficulties. We examined social and communication functioning in 44 high-functioning autism (HFA), 34 optimal outcome (OO) and 34 typically developing (TD) youth. Results indicated that OO participants had no autism communication symptoms, no pragmatic language deficits,…

The Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS; Gresham & Elliott, 2008) is a multiple stage, broadband system for assessing and intervening with children in preschool through 12th grade originally normed in the USA. Two of the assessment components of this system were analysed: (a) the Performance Screening Guides (PSGs); and (b) the Rating…

As pressure builds to assess students, teachers, and schools, educational practitioners and policy makers are increasingly looking toward student perception surveys as a promising means to collect high-quality, useful data. For instance, the widely cited Measures of Effective Teaching study lists student perception surveys as one of the three key…