Social competency and social perceptivity in self and others

Males who self-reported heterosocial problems and whose role-play interactions were judged to be low on social competence were compared to a group of high socially competent males on their ability to judge their own and others' social competency. Results indicated that in comparison to the high-competent group, low-competent males showed less agreement with judges in rating their own and others' levels of competency. Using profile components of elevation, scatter, and pattern, more detailed analyses showed that the two groups differed primarily on scatter. The low-competent individuals had less scatter, suggesting that they have a discrimination deficiency. Implications of the results are discussed for the etiology and treatment of social incompetence and for future research.     

Social validation of a conversational skills-training program

This study sought to demonstrate the social validity of a conversational skills-training program administered to two male clinical cases. Multiple-baseline, single-subject experimental designs were used to evaluate the effects of training on nonverbal and verbal behavior as assessed in unstructured dyadic interactions with experimentally naive peers. The interpersonal attractiveness of subjects also was rated by conversational partners following assessment interactions. Behavioral measures and attraction ratings were converted toT scores relative to means and standard deviations derived from normal subjects. Subject 1 demonstrated posttreatment behavioral skills which were between one and two standard deviations above the norm. Behavioral improvement was associated with comparable improvement in rated interpersonal attractiveness. Following treatment, Subject 2 demonstrated average behavioral competence, but interpersonal attractiveness was not notably enhanced by skills training. These findings are discussed relative to experimental and therapeutic criteria for evaluating treatment outcome.Portions of this research were completed while the authors were affiliated with the University of Georgia. Special thanks are extended to Michael Breakwell for his assistance in completing behavior ratings.     

Why the tall-poppy syndrome is becoming worse in the creative professions / Razones por las que el síndrome de la amapola alta es cada vez más acentuado en las profesiones creativas

Abstract

The tall-poppy syndrome (TPS) is a pattern of behaviour whereby people who excel in some respect are cut down to size by those around them. People are often uncomfortable with those who excel and therefore, in effect, seek to put them in their place. I argue in this article that the TPS is, in some respects, getting worse, even in the creative professions. I suggest a number of reasons why this might be so and also what societies might do about it.     

The relationship between numerical mapping abilities,maths achievement and socioeconomic status in 4- and 5-year-old children

Background

Early numeracy skills are associated with academic and life-long outcomes. Children from low-income backgrounds typically have poorer maths outcomes, and their learning can already be disadvantaged before they begin formal schooling. Understanding the relationship between the skills that support the acquisition of early maths skills could scaffold maths learning and improve life chances.

Aims

The present study aimed to examine how the ability of children from different SES backgrounds to map between symbolic (Arabic numerals) and non-symbolic (dot arrays) at two difficulty ratios related to their math performance.

Sample

Participants were 398 children in their first year of formal schooling (Mean age = 60 months), and 75% were from low SES backgrounds.

Method

The children completed symbolic to non-symbolic and non-symbolic to symbolic mapping tasks at two difficulty ratios (1:2; 2:3) plus standardized maths tasks.

Results

The results showed that all the children performed better for symbolic to non-symbolic mapping and when the ratio was 1:2. Mapping task performance was significantly related to maths task achievement, but low-SES children showed significantly lower performance on all tasks.

Conclusion

The results suggest that mapping tasks could be a useful way to identify children at risk of low maths attainment.     

Learning to read and write in Spanish: phonology in addition to which other processes? / Aprendiendo a leer y escribir en español: además de la fonología, ¿qué otros procesos?

Abstract

This study reviews some of the most relevant cognitive skills related to literacy acquisition in Spanish. Beyond the well-known influence of phonological segmental skills, it highlights the growing importance of other cognitive skills needed for acquisition, whether explicit or implicit in nature, to which too little attention has been devoted, including suprasegmental or prosodic skills, morphological skills and the implicit learning of linguistic regularities. It appears that all these skills constitute relevant factors that should be taken into account in order to understand typical as well as atypical literacy development.     

Using Direct Skills Teaching to Improve Job Skills for Persons With Disabilities

This study evaluated whether a direct skills training (DST) approach for persons with disabilities can better prepare participants for job interviews. Twenty graduate students in a master's program in rehabilitation counseling at various agency internship sites were trained in a 4‐session Presenting Qualifications curriculum based on DST administered to 126 participants in 20 group settings. Participants reported greater confidence and preparedness in the interview process, in answering difficult questions, and in highlighting past accomplishments after the group. Results support the feasibility of training entry‐level rehabilitation counselors in the DST approach to teach job interview skills to individuals with disabilities.     

Assessing and teaching job‐related social skills to adults with autism spectrum disorder

Few studies have evaluated interventions to improve the job‐related social skills of adults with autism spectrum disorder. In this study, we examined the efficacy of a treatment package for teaching several social skills that are critical to job success, such as responding appropriately to feedback and asking for a task model from the supervisor. Three adults, aged 19 to 27 years, participated. Initial training of each skill consisted of verbal explanations, modeling, and role‐play with feedback, along with stimulus prompts to promote generalization to a different setting. The trainer introduced additional intervention components as needed. We also evaluated generalization across different social skills and evocative situations. Results indicated that the treatment package was generally effective in improving the targeted social skills, and that stimulus prompts may be necessary for generalization to a job setting. However, generalized responding across social skills rarely emerged. These findings have important implications for preparing individuals with autism to function successfully on the job.     

Training kindergarten students lockdown drill procedures using behavioral skills training

During situations in which a gunman is present on a school campus, lockdowns are initiated until the threat is removed. However, there are no data demonstrating an effective teaching strategy to increase students’ correct responding during a lockdown. We evaluated the effectiveness of behavioral skills training (BST) to teach three groups of kindergarten students how to respond during lockdown drills. Results showed that participant groups displayed increases in correct steps and decreases in noise levels after BST was implemented; these effects maintained following training.     

Teaching safety skills to children to prevent gun play

Research has shown that children often engage in gun play when they find a firearm and that this behavior is often involved in unintentional firearm injuries. Previous research has shown existing programs to be ineffective for teaching children safety skills to reduce gun play. This study examined the effectiveness of a behavioral skills training (BST) program supplemented with in situ training for teaching children safety skills to use when they find a gun (i.e., don't touch, leave the area, tell an adult). Eight 4- to 5-year-old children were trained and assessed in a naturalistic setting and in a generalized setting in a multiple baseline across subjects design. Results showed that 3 of the children performed the skills after receiving BST, whereas 5 of the children required supplemental in situ training. All children in the study learned to perform the skills when assessed in a naturalistic setting and when assessed in a generalization setting. Performance was maintained at 2- to 8-week follow-up assessments.     

The effects of various rater training procedures on the perception of social skills and social anxiety

Procedures for the behavioral assessment of social skills typically rely on judges' perceptions of subjects' behavior in several simulated situations. This study examined two methodological variables which could influence the degree of situational specificity perceived by social skill judges. Forth-eight judges were presented videotapes of 15 actors who role played responses to eight simulated social situations. Half of the judges viewed the situations in a sequential fashion and the remaining half viewed the tapes grouped by situations. The second factor of this design included three different expectancy conditions included in an analogue training procedure. Differences in observed variability were examined for both social skill and social anxiety constructs. Order of stimulus presentation had no effect on variability. The expectancy manipulation significantly increased variability among social skill ratings but had no effect on reliability.This study was supported in part by the Veterans Administration.     

A Review of: “Woolfolk,R. L., & Allen,L. A. (2007). Treating Somatization: A Cognitive-Behavioral Approach.”

A 5-year old subject was treated for molestation-induced behavior problems consisting of excessive verbal ruminations and concamitant negative emotional responding. Treatment invovled utilization of a modified operant DRO procedure using the subject's mother as primary behavior change agent. Data based observations predicated on home-environment and generalization probe sources demonstrated dramatic reductions in problem behaviors targeted for intervention. Treatment gains remained stable over a 12-month period as indicated by extended follow-up assessment queries.     

Assessing therapeutic problem solving skills: Empirical analysis of a measuring operation

Employment of caregivers as trainers is an imperative in the training and treatment of mentally retarded persons. Besides being taught specific behavior modification skills, these paraprofessional trainers have to obtain a set of general skills in order to adjust their specific skills to new clients, situations, and behaviors across time. Empirical research on the characteristics of therapeutic problem-solving skills are scarce. This may be due to a reluctance of behavior researchers against including cognitive factors in the analysis of behavior influence. However, the development of basic knowledge on the existence of therapeutic problem-solving skills should be one of the primary research goals. This article describes the development and application of four scales assumed to be representative of an important set of general skills—therapeutic problem-solving skills. By means of these four scales 21 caregivers were evaluated before and after extensive training. A multifaceted measuring operation is employed with the main objective of empirically testing the dimensionality of problem-solving skills. Rater consistency and individual differences in change from pre- to post-training level are also uncovered. It is concluded that the four scales of therapeutic skills, largely reflect the same underlying concept of a rather general therapeutic problem-solving skill. Discussion of the findings also pointed to future research.     

Teaching Pedestrian Skills to Individuals with Developmental Disabilities

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effectiveness of most to least prompting on teaching pedestrian skills to individuals with developmental disabilities. Five individuals with developmental disabilities were taught three different pedestrian skills, all related to crossing the streets, using simulation activities on a road model in the gym of their school. A multiple probe design across behaviors was used to evaluate the effects of most to least prompting. The results of the study revealed that most to least prompting was effective in teaching pedestrian skills. The subjects learned each of the skills and managed to generalize these skills to the actual city traffic.     

Preschool language and visuospatial skills respectively predict multiplication and addition/subtraction skills in middle school children

A converging body of evidence from neuroimaging, behavioral, and neuropsychology studies suggests that different arithmetic operations rely on distinct neuro-cognitive processes: while addition and subtraction may rely more on visuospatial reasoning, multiplication would depend more on verbal abilities. In this paper, we tested this hypothesis in a longitudinal study measuring language and visuospatial skills in 358 preschoolers, and testing their mental calculation skills at the beginning of middle school. Language skills at 5.5 years significantly predicted multiplication, but not addition nor subtraction scores at 11.5 years. Conversely, early visuospatial skills predicted addition and subtraction, but not multiplication scores. These results provide strong support for the existence of a double dissociation in mental arithmetic operations, and demonstrate the existence of long-lasting links between language/visuospatial skills and specific calculation abilities.     

High school student-athletes’ perceptions and experiences of leadership as a life skill

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to gain student-athlete perceptions of: (1) the definition of leadership for high school student-athletes; (2) the process of leadership development in high school sport; and (3) the factors that have helped or hindered leadership transfer between high school sport and other life domains.DesignThis study was grounded in an interpretivist ontological perspective and used focus group interviews to gather insights of student-athletes’ leadership experiences.MethodPurposeful sampling identified 33 high-school student-athlete leaders who were members of student advisory councils for high school state athletic associations in the United States. The 15 females and 18 males participated in focus-group interviews. Reflexive thematic analysis of the interview data was then conducted.ResultsResults revealed that student-athlete leadership was viewed as a skill-set and a mindset, driven by individual agency. As an on-going developmental process, student-athletes gained awareness of leadership skills, increased self-expectations and self-confidence in their use and application of leadership skills, and developed a transformational leadership mindset, as they encountered and engaged with critical learning opportunities in high school sport and gained support from coaches and peers. Leadership application outside of sport was a multidimensional psychological process, including both conscious and implicit elements, and facilitated or constrained by environmental opportunities and social influences.ConclusionsHigh school sport offers a unique context where self-agentic youth leadership development in sport and life can occur through experiential learning opportunities. To this point, future research directions and recommendations for practitioners will be provided.     

Longitudinal Correlates of Arrest Status Among At-Risk Males

We examined the longitudinal adjustment, from grade 4 to grade 11, of a sample (n = 76) of boys judged to be at-risk for developing antisocial behavior patterns. We also examined subgroups of the sample differentiated by risk status and arrest records at grade 11. Antisocial behavior patterns exhibited by these boys demonstrated considerable stability over time. Differences were noted among high and lower-risk groups who were and were not arrested. In particular, measures of academic and social skills dimensions were related to better overall adjustment as indicated by lower arrest rates. Implications of these results for intervention are presented.     

Dyad Practice Impacts Self-Directed Practice Behaviors and Motor Learning Outcomes in a Contextual Interference Paradigm

We studied dyad practice to determine whether and how alternating practice blocks with a partner impacts self-directed practice scheduling, learning, and perceptions of practice. Participants were assigned to be Partner 1 (P1) or 2 (P2). P1s had a blocked, random, or self-directed schedule, while all P2s self-directed practice of 3, differently-timed keystroke-sequences. P2s showed both own error-dependent practice (switching sequences following better performance) and partner-dependent practice, with the partner's schedule impacting sequence selection and switching frequency. A partner's schedule also impacted learning. Random practice resulted in better timing accuracy than blocked practice for both partners in an immediate and delayed retention test. These data give evidence that self-directed practice behaviors and learning outcomes are modulated by a partner's practice schedule.     

TEAM SPORTS FOR THE SEVERELY RETARDED: TRAINING A SIDE-OF-THE-FOOT SOCCER PASS USING A MAXIMUM-TO-MINIMUM PROMPT REDUCTION STRATEGY

A program to teach three severely retarded adults to use a side-of-the-foot soccer pass was evaluated. A 9-step stimulus-response chain was taught using forward chaining. In contrast to usual practice, intensive physical prompts were provided initially to teach each response component, then systematically faded. Approximately 20 lessons (trials) were presented in 20-min sessions. A multiple baseline across subjects design showed that the three trainees achieved the no-prompt criterion after 24, 29, and 22 sessions, respectively. Subanalyses indicated that successive response components were learned only after training was implemented. Follow-up data were obtained 57 and 276 days later in the training room and in a gymnasium; in both settings, criterion was achieved with fewer than three reinstructions.