Social Narrative Interventions for Students with Autism

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Social Narrative Interventions for Students with Autism SOCIAL NARRATIVE INTERVENTIONS FOR STUDENTS WITH AUTISM A dissertation submitted to the Kent State University Graduate School of Education, Health and Human Services in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Suzanne Josephine Gikas August 2013 © Copyright, 2013, by Suzanne Josephine Gikas All Rights Reserved ii A dissertation written by Suzanne Josephine Gikas B.A. Honors, University of Essex, 1984 P.G.C.E., Canterbury, Christ Church College, 1993 M. Ed., Special Education, Kent State University, 2006 Approved by ______________________________, Director, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Lyle Barton ______________________________, Member, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Frank Sansosti ______________________________, Member, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Sloane Burgess Accepted by ______________________________, Director, School of Lifespan Development and Mary Dellman-Jenkins Educational Sciences ______________________________, Dean, College and Graduate School of Daniel F. Mahony Education, Health, and Human Services iii GIKAS, SUZANNE JOSEPHINE, Ph.D., AUGUST 2013 EDUCATION HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SOCIAL NARRATIVE INTERVENTIONS FOR STUDENTS WITH AUTISM (119 pp.) Director of Dissertation: Lyle Barton, Ed.D. In this study, a multiple baseline design across participants was used to evaluate the effects of a social narrative on teaching appropriate social skills to three students with autism. Currently, guidelines for Social Story™, as established by Carol Gray, have become very popular despite minimal scientific evidence to support their efficacy (Bellini, Peters, Benner, & Hopf, 2007; Sansosti, Powell-Smith, & Kincaid, 2004; Reynhout & Carter, 2006). This study deliberately deviates from Gray’s guidelines in an attempt to evaluate the contribution of the narrative to social literacy in students with autism. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Without the advice, encouragement and support of my advisor, Dr. Lyle Barton, this dissertation would never have been completed. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to him for his wisdom, guidance, and good humor. I also thank Dr. Sansosti and Dr. Burgess wholeheartedly for their continual support, advice, expertise, and, above all, for the honor of agreeing to be part of my committee. I thank my family, Jay, Faith, Lily, and Jake for their love and endurance, and for allowing me the time and space to pursue my goals, often at the expense of their own. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. iv CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION AND REVIEW OF LITERATURE ............................................... 1 Definition ................................................................................................................ 1 Characteristics of Autism ........................................................................................ 3 Social Interaction ........................................................................................... 4 Peer Relationships ......................................................................................... 6 Communication ............................................................................................. 7 Theory of Mind ............................................................................................. 8 Generalization ............................................................................................. 10 Learning Styles ............................................................................................ 12 Restricted and/or Repetitive Patterns of Behavior, Interests, and Activities ..................................................................................................... 12 Considerations for Designing Interventions ......................................................... 13 Implications ................................................................................................. 13 Research-Based Interventions ..................................................................... 14 Significance ................................................................................................. 15 Social Story™ ........................................................................................................ 16 Definition .................................................................................................... 16 Guidelines for Writing a Social Story™ ...................................................... 17 Story Sentences .....................................................................................19 Ratio ......................................................................................................21 Summary ..................................................................................................... 22 Review of Extant Social Story™ Research ............................................................ 23 Background ................................................................................................. 23 Research Analysis ....................................................................................... 23 Analysis of Social Story™ Interventions for Students With Autism Research Synthesis Table ..................................................................... 26 Analysis of Guidelines .......................................................................................... 27 Interpretation ............................................................................................... 27 Guideline 1 ............................................................................................27 Guideline 4 ............................................................................................28 Guideline 7 ............................................................................................29 Guideline 8 ............................................................................................30 Guideline 9 ............................................................................................30 Guideline Summary ..................................................................................... 31 Confounds ............................................................................................................. 32 Research Design.................................................................................................... 34 v AB Design ................................................................................................... 35 Reversal/Withdrawal Designs ..................................................................... 35 Multiple Treatment Designs ........................................................................ 36 Multiple Baseline Designs .......................................................................... 37 Design Strengths ......................................................................................... 40 Conclusion ................................................................................................... 41 Purpose .................................................................................................................. 42 II. METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................................... 44 Participants ............................................................................................................ 44 Individual Participant Information ........................................................................ 44 Caleb ............................................................................................................ 44 David ........................................................................................................... 45 Charles ......................................................................................................... 46 Settings ........................................................................................................ 46 Procedures ............................................................................................................. 48 Recruitment ................................................................................................. 48 Selection ...................................................................................................... 48 Permission ................................................................................................... 49 Identification of Target Behaviors .............................................................. 50 Caleb ......................................................................................................50 David .....................................................................................................50 Charles ...................................................................................................51 Dependent Measures ................................................................................... 51 Dependent measure for Caleb ...............................................................51 Dependent measure for David ...............................................................52 Dependent measure for Charles ............................................................52 Dependent variables ..............................................................................52 Design and Preparation of Interventions............................................................... 54 Research
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