Outcome assessment in social skills training with children

• Published in: Journal of School Psychology 1988-06, Vol.26 (2), p.167-183
• Main Authors: Hughes, Jan N., Sullivan, Kathryn A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0022-4405; 1873-3506
• DOI: 10.1016/0022-4405(88)90018-0

Thirty-eight social skills training studies that used a social-learning or social-cognitive approach and were published between 1976 and 1985 were reviewed with respect to methods of outcome assessment. Recommendations in the literature regarding the assessment of treatment outcomes are grouped into two categories. First, assessment measures should evaluate the extent to which skills taught generalize across tasks, settings, behaviors, children, and time. Second, outcome measures should assess both whether the skills taught improved and whether training had an impact on a socially valued criterion, such as peer acceptance or teacher ratings. The majority of studies neither adequately measured generalization and durability of treatment effects nor permitted a functional analysis of the relationship between target behaviors and socially valid outcomes. Exemplary practices in outcome assessment are discussed and recommendations for future research are offered.