This article identifies ways in which cultural discontinuities naturally occur in the schools for students from culturally diverse backgrounds and ways in which school personnel can bring about more satisfactory adjustments by directly teaching requisite skills. Recommendations include creating positive affirming environments and teaching…

The relationship of parent and teacher ratings of social skills and problem behaviors, using the Social Skills Rating System with two peer-reference measures, were examined with 101 fifth- and sixth-graders. Teacher ratings of social skills, problem behaviors, and academic competence showed moderate correlations with both peer measures. (Contains…

A study compared the effectiveness of video modeling with in vivo modeling for teaching developmental skills to five children (ages 7-11) with autism. Targeted skills included social skills and daily living skills. Video modeling led to faster acquisition of tasks than in vivo modeling and was effective in promoting generalization. (Author/CR)

This pilot study examined the playground social behaviors of eight children (ages 6-10) with language impairments (LI) and their typical peers. Analysis of videotape recordings found LI children spent significantly less time interacting with peers and demonstrated significantly more withdrawn behaviors than did their peers, with group membership…

This article discusses the social interaction deficits of persons with Asperger Syndrome and describes a social behavioral learning strategy, SODA (Stop, Observe, Deliberate, and Act), that will enhance the social interaction skills of persons with Asperger Syndrome. It explains the components of SODA and provides a set of teaching guidelines.…

Used NICHD Early Child Care data to examine effects of attentional persistence on relationship of infant negative emotionality to age 3 outcomes. Found that high negative emotionality related to low social competence only when attentional persistence was poor. Found no moderating effects of attentional persistence for behavior problems. High…

Discuses fear of failure (FF) in sports and physical education, reviewing literature on FF, recommending a multidimensional model of FF appraisals, examining research on the development of FF, and emphasizing three interpersonal paths of influence: family structure and climate, parental demands for independence and mastery, and parent-child…

Discusses the use of role-play for the development of interpersonal skills and evaluates a computer-based learning environment for initial training in dealing with social-communicative problems. Discusses high cognitive load, explains the use of a conversational model, describes the results of two experiments with university students, and suggests…

This study examined the impact of play activities, teachers' predictions of children's sociability, and intervention fidelity variables on levels of interaction between three preschoolers with autism and their nondisabled peers. Results indicated that social reciprocity and peer effort correlated highly with children's levels of social…

The Social Relations Model is applied to the evaluation of how 34 secondary school students with learning disabilities (LD) rated their own and peers' social skills and behavioral self-control. Subjects viewed themselves individually as less skilled than they viewed their LD peers as a group, contrary to data from typical children and adults.…

A cluster analytic study was conducted to derive behaviorally homogeneous subtypes of pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) based on a range of behavioral symptoms that characterize autism. Analysis of data on 34 children with PDD, 27 of whom met criteria for autism, indicated 4 distinct groups differing on independent measures of social,…

This study examined social problem-solving motivations and abilities, concurrent levels and types of distress, and personal problems among 688 high school students. Surveys of student stress and problem solving indicated that as problem-solving scores increased, distress and personal problems decreased. Negative attitudes greatly influenced…

Examined whether peer-rejected preadolescents differ from nonrejected groups (average, popular, neglected) in their explanations for peer-social events and their perceived control of outcomes. Found that rejected children were inclined to forego credit for acceptance, to ascribe rejection to persistent factors, and to perceive lower control of…

This brief article on emotional development of gifted students identifies key intrapersonal and interpersonal skills including self-awareness; the ability to regulate thoughts, emotions, and behaviors; self-acceptance; the ability to desire and demonstrate basic social skills; the ability to respond to the needs of others; and the ability to…

This study used an ABAB design to determine if a peer buddy approach in which kindergarten students were trained to interact in dyads would increased non-adult direct interactions. Data collected on the two kindergarten students with autism indicate the peer buddy approach significantly increased their appropriate social interactions. (Contains…