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Effects of Social Stories on Prosocial Behavior of Preschool Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

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Abstract

Social Stories™ are a popular intervention for preschool children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), but little research on Social Stories has been conducted with this population. This study investigated the effects of Social Stories on prosocial behavior of three preschool children with ASD in an inclusive setting. An ABAB design was used for two participants, while an ABACBC was used for the third. Social Stories increased appropriate behavior and decreased inappropriate behavior for two participants. The addition of verbal prompts (condition C) was necessary to increase appropriate behavior for the third participant. Maintenance probes were conducted to assess whether stories became imbedded in classroom routines. Results are discussed in relation to applications, study limitations, and areas for future research.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, 4505 Maryland Parkway, Box 453014, Las Vegas, NV, 89154, USA

    Shannon Crozier & Matt Tincani

Authors
  1. Shannon Crozier
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  2. Matt Tincani
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shannon Crozier.

Appendices

Appendix A: Participants’ Social Stories

Text for James’ Social Story

  • Playing with Friends

  • My name is James.

  • We have centers at school.

  • Friends can play together at centers.

  • Sometimes we use toys together.

  • Sometimes we play beside our friends.

  • We keep our hands and feet to ourselves when we play.

  • I will try to share toys with my friends.

  • I will try to keep my hands and feet to myself.

  • It is fun to play together.

  • My friends are happy when I play nicely at centers!

Text for Thomas’ Social Story

  • Sitting at Circle

  • My name is Thomas.

  • We have circle time at school.

  • The kids sit on the carpet with the teacher.

  • The kids sit and watch the teacher.

  • Sometimes we sing and read at circle.

  • I will sit on the carpet with my friends at circle time.

  • I will look at the teacher in circle.

  • My teacher is happy when I sit at circle!

Text for Daniel’s Social Story

  • Talking with friends at snack

  • My name is Daniel.

  • We have snack at school.

  • Friends talk and share at snack.

  • Some friends say “Hi!”

  • Some friends ask for a drink.

  • Some friends ask for more snack.

  • I can say “Hi” to my friends.

  • I can ask for more snack.

  • Friends are happy when we talk at snack!

Appendix B: Treatment Integrity Checklist

Treatment Integrity Checklist

Student: …………………………

Date: …………………………

Location: …………………………

Observer: …………………………

Step

Completed?

Sit at table across from student

 

Book on table in front of student

 

Read book with student

 

Encourage student to look and point to story

 

Tell student it’s time to do activity in story

 

Direct student back to activity

 

Appendix C: Social Validity Questionnaire

Social Story™ Study

Teacher Questionnaire

Please complete this brief questionnaire on the study conducted in your classroom. Thank you for your participation and cooperation!

  1. 1.

    Do you find the social story intervention easy to use and understand?

  2. 2.

    Will you use the social stories with the participants in the study when the study is over?

  3. 3.

    Do you think you will consider using social stories with your students in the future?

  4. 4.

    What do you consider to be the pros and cons of using social stories?

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Crozier, S., Tincani, M. Effects of Social Stories on Prosocial Behavior of Preschool Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. J Autism Dev Disord 37, 1803–1814 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-006-0315-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-006-0315-7

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