Poster Session #2

Presentation Type

Poster

Faculty Mentor’s Full Name

Anisa Goforth

Faculty Mentor’s Department

Department of Psychology

Abstract / Artist's Statement

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) represents a range of developmental disorders involving difficulties with communication and nonverbal behaviors (American Psychological Association, 2013)., and impacts roughly 1 in 68 births (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016).Those diagnosed may exhibit poor eye contact, repetitive or compulsive behavior, and inability to understand others’ emotions (Barry et al., 2003). Children with ASD struggle with social interaction, often removing themselves from social situations or engaging in inappropriate behavior that can cause further isolation from their typically developing peers (Kalyva & Avramidis, 2005).

The current study examines the effectiveness of Youth Engagement Through Intervention (YETI), a group-based social skills intervention that uses multiple evidence-based practices (i.e. video modeling, social narratives and visual schedules) creating individualized treatment for each child with ASD. The purpose of this study was to improve social interactions of children with ASD. We defined social interaction as 1) verbal and nonverbal greetings and goodbyes, 2) orientation of face and body towards a clinician or peer when they are being spoken to, 3) and engagement in back and forth, turn taking, communication with peers. We expected YETI would be successful in improving these skills.

Three children with ASD participated in the current study: Two males (ages 7 and 11) and one female (age 7). Observational data using event recording was collected throughout the eight-week program (1.5-hour weekly sessions), on how often each child exhibits social interactions. YETI is provided in a limited timeframe, thus an AB single subjects design is appropriate to assess the treatment effects. However, AB designs cannot determine between-subjects effects, detect small effects, or be generalized.

With rising rates of ASD it is important to develop and implement effective treatments to assist individuals with social skill deficits to better navigate our social world.

Category

Social Sciences

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Apr 27th, 3:00 PM Apr 27th, 4:00 PM

Effectiveness of Youth Engagement Through Intervention (YETI): An Intensive Treatment

UC South Ballroom

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) represents a range of developmental disorders involving difficulties with communication and nonverbal behaviors (American Psychological Association, 2013)., and impacts roughly 1 in 68 births (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016).Those diagnosed may exhibit poor eye contact, repetitive or compulsive behavior, and inability to understand others’ emotions (Barry et al., 2003). Children with ASD struggle with social interaction, often removing themselves from social situations or engaging in inappropriate behavior that can cause further isolation from their typically developing peers (Kalyva & Avramidis, 2005).

The current study examines the effectiveness of Youth Engagement Through Intervention (YETI), a group-based social skills intervention that uses multiple evidence-based practices (i.e. video modeling, social narratives and visual schedules) creating individualized treatment for each child with ASD. The purpose of this study was to improve social interactions of children with ASD. We defined social interaction as 1) verbal and nonverbal greetings and goodbyes, 2) orientation of face and body towards a clinician or peer when they are being spoken to, 3) and engagement in back and forth, turn taking, communication with peers. We expected YETI would be successful in improving these skills.

Three children with ASD participated in the current study: Two males (ages 7 and 11) and one female (age 7). Observational data using event recording was collected throughout the eight-week program (1.5-hour weekly sessions), on how often each child exhibits social interactions. YETI is provided in a limited timeframe, thus an AB single subjects design is appropriate to assess the treatment effects. However, AB designs cannot determine between-subjects effects, detect small effects, or be generalized.

With rising rates of ASD it is important to develop and implement effective treatments to assist individuals with social skill deficits to better navigate our social world.