Reviews past and present conceptualizations and summarized narrative and meta-analytic reviews of social skills training (SST) outcome studies. Overall, modest effect sizes are reported in the meta-analytic literature, suggesting that SST is a relatively weak intervention strategy. Recommendations for rebuilding SST are provided. (Author/CR)

Describes an experimental hypothesis-testing model of structural analysis designed to identify critical contextual variables associated with successful social interaction. Suggestions for general education settings are provided, with an emphasis on matching inclusive social environments to individual student antecedent variables. Strengths and…

Tested hypotheses that severity of arthritis is inversely associated with frequency of activity participation, and arthritis sufferers who maintain higher levels of participation, particularly in social activities, are less likely to experience a decline in well-being. Found well-being is influenced by social activity, whereas solitary and…

Discusses child peer relationships in relation to teacher's role; object-conflict, sharing, and cooperation; causal, consequential, and alternative thinking; inferring and responding to emotions; perspective taking and empathy; and initiating friendship and group entry. Claims that children's discussion documents their growing understanding of…

The Social Awareness Inventory (SAI), which assesses individual differences in eight social-perceptual styles, is introduced and applied in three studies. The model is derived by crossing the three binary dimensions of target (self or other), perspective (own or other's), and content (overt appearance or covert experience). The SAI appears to…

A study evaluated effects of a multifaceted training procedure on the inappropriate and appropriate social behavior of five adolescents with mild intellectual disability and on staff responses. The training included video feedback and self-management procedures and staff training with video and graphic feedback. Results indicated increases in…

Study focuses on a sample of economically disadvantaged adolescents attending New York City schools (N=1,875). Longitudinal predictors of smoking from four domains were tested, with findings supporting both social learning theory and problem behavior theory. Discusses the key components for effective smoking prevention approaches. (Author/GCP)

Examined whether fourth- and fifth-grade children's social goals and strategies in friendship conflict situations are predictive of their friendship adjustment, after accounting for level of peer acceptance. Found that children's goals were highly related to their strategies and that children's goals and strategies were predictive of their…

A full appreciation of why students display positive classroom behavior requires an understanding of students' personal goals, as well as the degree to which these goals are valued by teachers and peers. A caring classroom environment in which teachers and peers support and promote the expression of positive social behaviors appears to play a…

A case study of a young boy (age 2) with autism illustrates the use of the developmental, individual-difference, relationship based model. During spontaneous "floor time" play sessions, adults follow the child's lead, utilizing affectively toned interactions through gestures and words to move the child up the symbolic ladder. (Contains…

This article provides an overview of the integrated play groups (IPGs) model designed to support children with autism in play with typical children. A pilot investigation involving 2 Taiwanese children (ages 6-7) found each child made notable gains in reciprocal social interactions and symbolic/pretend play with participating in IPGs. (Contains…

Argues that focusing on gender differences in educational outcomes without considering race and social class obscures gender achievement relationships. Draws on Pierre Bourdieu's theory of practice for its insights into the ways that structure and human agency generate social behavior. Presents hypotheses to explain the anomaly of women's…

Background: Although DSM-IV requires symptoms in three criterion domains for a diagnosis of autistic disorder, the extent to which those domains are phenotypically independent is an unanswered and important question. The identification of "endophenotypes" of the autistic syndrome may be very useful for genetic and neurobiologic studies of autism,…

According to social norms theory, when high school students overestimate the use of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs (ATOD) by their peers, they tend to use more themselves. The purpose of this study was to determine whether these over estimations (misperceptions) could be corrected through a similar age peer-to-peer interactive social norms…

This study examined the psychosocial functioning of 100 adolescent females (ages 12-17) sentenced to secure care in a southeastern state and the impact of a gender-specific, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on the psychosocial functioning of subjects who reported a history of sexual abuse. The Multidimensional Adolescent Assessment…