Training Paraprofessionals to Improve Socialization in Students with ASD

• Published in: Journal of autism and developmental disorders Vol. 44; no. 9; pp. 2197 - 2208
• Main Authors: Koegel, Robert L., Kim, Sunny, Koegel, Lynn Kern
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Springer US 01.09.2014; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Allied health personnel; Autism; Autism Spectrum Disorders; Autistic children; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Biological and medical sciences; Care and treatment; Child; Child and School Psychology; Child clinical studies; Crisis Management; Developmental disorders; Economic Status; Ethnic Diversity; Female; Fidelity; General Education; Grade 2; Humans; Infantile autism; Interpersonal Competence; Intervention; Male; Management Development; Medical sciences; Neurosciences; Occupational Therapy; Original Paper; Paraprofessional School Personnel; Paraprofessionals; Pediatrics; Peer Group; Peer Groups; Peer Relationship; Peers; Pervasive Developmental Disorders; Professionals; Program Implementation; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Public Health; School districts; Schools - manpower; Social Development; Social education; Social interaction; Social interventions; Socialization; Special Education; Special education teachers; Staff Development; Student Development; Students; Students - psychology; Students with Disabilities; Teaching Methods; Training; United States; United States > US; Santa Barbara California; Training; Autism; School; Paraprofessional; Socialization; Human; Social development; Developmental disorder; Student; School environment
• ISSN: 0162-3257; 1573-3432; 1573-3432
• DOI: 10.1007/s10803-014-2094-x

An important line of research relates to whether school personnel, such as paraprofessionals, who are present during unstructured social periods, such as lunch-recess, could successfully implement interventions to improve socialization between students with ASD and their typical peers in a group setting. Therefore, within the context of a multiple baseline across participants design, we assessed whether training paraprofessionals to provide social interventions would enhance social development in students with ASD in a group setting. Results showed that paraprofessionals who were not providing any social opportunities during baseline were able to meet fidelity of implementation following a brief training. Consequently, the children with ASD increased their levels of engagement and rates of initiation with typically developing peers following intervention. Implications for training paraprofessionals to implement effective social interventions for students with ASD are discussed.