| Description |
It is critical for young children to develop social-emotional competence, as delays in this area are associated with negative social and behavioral outcomes, and the preschool classroom is a natural setting for children to build these skills. However, for many children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), this can be a challenging task, as difficulties with self-regulation and problem behavior can create additional barriers in accessing social and educational environments. An important first step in developing self-regulation is learning to identify one's own emotions. The primary purpose of the present study was to determine if a visual emotion rating scale intervention with scheduled check-in times would decrease the frequency of challenging behaviors in preschoolers with ASD. This study also compared child self-ratings with corresponding teacher ratings, assessed whether general education teachers were able to implement the intervention and collect behavioral data with fidelity in their classrooms, and measured teacher ratings of the social validity of the intervention. A multiple baseline probe design across participants was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention. The intervention was successful in decreasing rates of problem behavior, and children and their teachers showed high rates of agreement in their ratings of the child's emotions using the visual scale. Additionally, teachers rated the intervention favorably on a measure of social validity, and were able to implement the intervention and data collection with acceptable or better fidelity following training and performance feedback. |
