The Autism Society Event and Education Recordings Archive

This workshop will teach participants methods for addressing social challenges that are an endemic aspect of autism. The advantages and short-comings of traditional social skills training programs will be described. Techniques and strategies that compensate for neurologically based social, emotional, cognitive, and linguistic differences not completely addressed by social skills training will then be presented so that parents, professionals, and service providers can best promote healthy social development in older children and adults on the spectrum. In the beginning of the workshop, the pros and cons of social skills training initiatives will be discussed. Those enrolled in traditional social skills training program do benefit from participation. For example, students may learn basic ways to introduce themselves to friends versus authority figures. Students may also learn to use a quiet voice in a restaurant or on a public bus. No one is denying that social skills training programs can be useful. But students in social skills programs do not seem to gain anunderstanding of “deeper” social nuances, leading to continued misunderstandings and complications in social interactions. This workshop will endeavor to illuminate the underlying reasons.

In section one, the neurological profile that informs how autistic individuals think, feel, and process the world will be identified and explored. Concrete examples will demonstrate how these neurologically based differences impact social navigation. For example, individuals on the spectrum may be able to memorize rules of decorum, but may still be confused by the myriad context-driven rapidly delivered signals inherent in most social exchanges. Some individuals on the spectrum may be able to learn how to modulate voice volume, but may still be unable to decipher a lie or recognize a joke. Children and adults on the spectrum, even those who perform well academically, are highly articulate, and maintain a great degree of independence, may have trouble reacting appropriately when intense emotions and social impulses are involved. Social expectations and rules can be memorized proficiently, but this information is ineffectual if an autistic individual cannot recognize and regulate emotions, utilize self-knowledge, and comprehend the consequences of open-ended social choices, all key components of making adept social decisions.

In section two, a discussion continues regarding the impact neurological features associated with autism have on social development. Participants will learn how autistic traits influence all social contexts, with a special focus on communication and cognitive features, repetitive/ritualistic behavior, and executive functioning. Specific examples will demonstrate how autism complicates an individual’s ability to communicate appropriately and accurately, behave successfully, delineate social judgments, reach social and personal goals, and stay safe, no matter how many social skills, permutations, and rules have been practiced or learned. Facial blindness, being nonverbal, and the special identity and development issues of autistic girls and women and the impact of these features and issues on social development will also be discussed.

In section three, participants learn techniques and strategies that can be used with older children and adults on the spectrum to address the short-comings of social skills trainings and the realities of living with a unique cognitive and neurological profile. For example, Safe Activity Lists and Counting Maybes are two techniques people on the spectrum can use to steer clear of potentially dangerous encounters without having to be proficient at decoding social nuances. Hidden curriculum strategies tailored to the way people on the spectrum learn and think – including video modeling, social stories, and the Ambassador Program – can help individuals understand expectations, norms, responsibilities, and social options. Practical tools like Safety Kits, Internet Safety Pledges, Emergency Cards, and Buddy Lists can improve safety by utilizing autistic strengths. Emotion Scales, Color Charts, Reaction Rules, and Help Systems can improve an individual’s ability to regulate emotions, make healthy emotion-based decisions, and reach out for guidance. How all of these techniques and strategies improve an individual’s ability to react appropriately, to stay within normative behavior boundaries, and to increase behavior fluidity without requiring extensive personal insight or vast comprehension of social realities will be demonstrated.

Lastly, in section four, parents, professionals, teachers, and service providers will learn how to teach autistic children and adults to use these materials and techniques to keep themselves out of danger. Nonverbal autistic individuals are socializing more now, in part due to improvements in therapies, interventions, education, and communication tools. Even verbal autistic people who do well academically and are quite independent can still lack the ability to make basic social judgments that are crucial to staying safe and socializing successfully. Wherever someone is on the spectrum, these issues are paramount. Increased socializing, increased interest in others, and increased desire to relate to other people are positive developments in the life of an autistic person, but corresponding strategies and techniques must be taught so autistic people can take care of themselves, make good social choices, stay out of trouble, avoid complications with the law, and achieve their personal and social goals.

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