Teen Peer Socialization Groups: Strategies for Building Social Networks for Adolescents with ASD KRISTEN BOTTEMA PH.D. CANDIDATE, JOINT DOCTORAL PROGRAM IN SPECIAL EDUCATION UC BERKELEY AND SFSU NATIONAL STUDENT SPEECH LANGUAGE HEARING ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE APRIL 24, 2010 SFSU
Overview Issues of Peer Interaction for Adolescents with ASD Describing Social Interaction Are Social Skills Really Skills? Integrated Teen Social Groups Facilitating Interaction Current Research Findings Caveats and Solutions Questions/Comments
What are the social experiences of adolescents with ASD? Adolescents with autism experience fewer friendships, social activities, and recreational outings than their typical peers Middle and High school has difficulties for all students, but especially students with ASD Individuals with autism are at risk for poor adult health outcomes including depression, anxiety, underemployment, and lack of community access Bullying and active exclusion from typical peers (Bauminger & Kasari, 2000; Ghaziuddin, Ghaziuddin, & Greden, 2002; Humphrey & Lewis, 2008; Orsmond, Krauss, & Seltzer, 2004)
Processes Involved in Social Interaction Top Down Processes Social/historical conventions Classroom Rules More rigid and pre-determined Bottom Up Processes Negotiation of new norms created by group participants themselves More fluid and dynamic Indicative of closeness in peer relationships Feed back on and influence one another (Ochs, Kremer-Sadlik, Sirota, & Solomon, 2004)
Navigating the Social World In order to participate in social contexts, a social member must be able to: Track and interpret actions Note stances of others Link actions and stances to expectations Contextualize actions, stances, and participants through time within the general activity Coordinate several activities occurring at one time Know how and when to change conventional ways of participating (Ochs, 2002)
Navigating the Social World Participants must also be able to signal to others in culturally understood ways : Actions being performed Social activity Psychological stances Affective stance Epistemic stance Social identity Social roles, statuses, and relationships Community, institutional, ethnic, socioeconomic, and gender (Ochs, 2002)
Skills vs. a ‘Feel for the game’ Can the above abilities be taught as discrete skills? Are they discrete skills? Social competence might better be described as a ‘feel for the game’ Embodied practice Having and knowing skills can be a ‘roof without a foundation’ (Carr, 2007; Klin, Jones, Schultz, & Volkmar, 2003; Nelson, 2007; Ochs, Solomon, & Sterponi; Sterponi & Fasulo, 2010)
Integrated Teen Social Groups
Goals of Social Groups Foster motivation for being social through positive social experience Guide teens with ASD in creating and maintaining their own social lives Provide entryway into a legitimate peer culture Educate typical teens about individuals with ASD through direct experience and active discussion (Carr, 2007; Wolfberg, 2003)
Organizing a Group • Find teens with similar interests – Harry Potter fanatics – Video game aficionados – Craft lovers • Group size should reflect comfort level of participants with ASD. Ratio should be 1:1 or higher • Be sure that the group is culturally integrated into surrounding setting Setting Social Group Examples After School Comic book club Lunch time Board game lunch bunch Summer Camp Team building workshop
Social Group Structure Personal updates Round-robin or free discussion Previously Chosen activity Clean-up Discuss and choose the next activity Validate all ideas; suggest adjustments so that activities are age appropriate and can involve everyone Cooperation is key
Facilitating Interaction
Elicit Buy-in From All Group Members Encourage members to make the group their own, and come up with mutually enjoyable activities Frame group meetings as legitimate social experiences with all members on equal footing Avoid a tutoring dynamic If volunteer credit, extra-credit, or other enticements are given to typical peers, these should be faded with time If typical peers are volunteering, find volunteer activities for the whole group to do once a month Encourage group members to just be the themselves
Adapt Activities to Reflect Everyone’s Interests Example: Dawn and Kara are two 16- year old peers in a social group with Celia, also 16, who is diagnosed with PDD-NOS. During a discussion about which activities the girls should do at the next social group meeting, Celia has suggested that the group color in coloring books. Dawn and Kara look skeptical that this will be a fun activity. What should the facilitator do to help guide a legitimate social experience?
Some Ideas for Adjustment: Instead of a coloring project, frame the activity as an art project Instead of crayons, provide materials that might be enticing to they typical peers like pastels, paints, colored pencils Other suggestions: Create holiday greeting cards Paint ceramic mugs or saucers Decorate flower pots with paint or other materials Not everyone has to have the same role for each activity
Scaffolding Interaction Facilitator as ‘context engineer’ Insert suggestions, not directives Decrease and increase support as needed Point out Shared Interests and Commonalities As social groups move forward, the peers scaffold interaction on their own Remember that facilitator actions are PART OF the social interaction It isn’t possible to ‘step outside of’ or ‘correct’ interactions, only to reframe them (Fasulo & Fiore, 2007; Wolfberg, 2003)
Act as Interpreter Simple explanations for behavior that might appear odd will go a long way Interpret communicative attempts made by participants with ASD Interpretation can work both ways; typical peers as well as participants with ASD might need explanations
Facilitate Discussion About Diversity, Inclusion, and Problem Solving Don’t let difference be the elephant in the room Group members should come to understand why its important to include everyone All group members should leave with a better sense of how to negotiate and compromise Equality vs. Equity (Nucci, 2001; Wolfberg, McCracken, & Tuchel, 2009)
What Happens in Social Groups? Research Findings 2 qualitative pilot studies Social group makeup: Four girls; two typically developing, two with ASD; aged 13-17 Three girls; two typically developing, one with ASD; aged 12-14 A total of 23 hours of video taped sessions Groups took place in community settings Participant observation/facilitator
Navigating the Social World Participants with ASD were able to engage in complex interactions with peers Participants with ASD employed multiple resources to structure participation Members asserted individual and group identities ‘Top Down’ processes and perceptions of individuals with ASD impacted interaction and the appearance of ASD symptomology ‘Bottom Up’ processes resulted in new conventions that were inclusive of participants with ASD
Bottom-up Processes Conventionalization
Bottom-up Processes Structuring Participation
Bottom-up Processes Structuring Identities
Top Down Social Processes Deciding when and how to include
Caveats and Solutions Finding time for social groups Recruiting group members Including developmentally diverse group members Incorporating appropriate behavior plans
Future Research Social Groups at Strawberry Canyon Camp Integrated into leaders-in-training program Ages 12-18 Ask me for details/brochure
Questions/Comments? For more information, contact Kristen Bottema; Kbottema@berkeley.edu
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