Although autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a heterogeneous disorder, recently more homogeneous phenotypic subgroups, which still lack evidence, have been identified. Our goal is to describe and analyse different behavioural profiles of ASD, in social communication and interaction (SCI) and restricted and repetitive behaviours and interests…

This study examined longitudinal associations between parental psychological distress (stress and depression) when the child was 2 to 4 years and a child's emotional and behavioural problems at ages 3 to 4, and social functioning (loneliness and social competence) at age 11 in very preterm born children. The participants were Finnish families of…

Although evidence has suggested that social skills interventions yield social and symptom benefits for autistic children, significant variability in outcomes between studies has raised important questions regarding efficacy and moderators of intervention outcomes (i.e., which interventions yield positive effects and which autistic children are…

Poor reading has been linked to negative outcomes on a wide range of emotional-behavioural dimensions in children. However, little is known about the time course of these associations. In this study we analyse data from a sample of Finnish children (N = 199; 106 boys) which included measures of reading fluency in grade 1 (age 7 or 8), and…

This study examined informant discrepancies for parent and teacher adaptive behavior ratings of 103 children, ages 6-12 years, with ASD (without intellectual disability). Scores on the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System, third edition (Harrison and Oakland, Western Psychological Services, Los Angeles, 2015) General Adaptive Composite (GAC) and…

Shyness, which is characterized by social withdrawal behaviours and approaching-withdrawal conflicted social motivations, is suggested to influence children's social-emotional development. This study examined the association between shyness and social-emotional development among Chinese children aged 3 to 12. A systematic search of both Chinese…

This article draws on the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) to examine parent ratings of social, emotional and behavioural difficulties and prosocial behaviour in pre- and mid-adolescents. A series of mixed-design ANOVAs yielded interesting results. Parent ratings of emotional difficulties in girls increased as they moved from pre- to mid-adolescence…

This study examined the development of social skills across five measurement points from 4th through 7th grade, and the influence of child gender and school-related factors on the level and growth of social skills, in a large sample of normally developing children in Norway (N = 2,076). On average, children's social skills scores increased…

Objective: Youth who receive services in residential programs have high rates of traumatic exposure and associated symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Little information is available on specific social skills training that could be beneficial for youth in residential programs with PTSD. This study examined changes in behavioral…

The study examines the effectiveness of the iPad application "AutisMate" in promoting the modeling of social communication and social interaction skills in a 12 year-old boy with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The study uses a single-subject, embedded, case study design. It calls attention to the use of assistive technology in school…

Given the increasing societal concerns about youth's mental health problems in the context of rapid sociocultural changes in urban China, studying the links of appraisals and coping to Chinese children's adjustment can inform cultural adaptations of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) interventions for this population. In a school-based sample of…

This study aimed to evaluate the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS: Laugeson et al. in "J Autism Dev Disord" 39(4):596-606, 2009). PEERS focuses on improving friendship quality and social skills among adolescents with higher-functioning ASD. 58 participants aged 11-16 years-old were randomly assigned to…

School is often considered an ideal setting for child social skills training due to the opportunities it provides for skills teaching, modeling, and practice. The current study evaluated the effectiveness of two variants of the Secret Agent Society social skills program for children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (HFASD) in a…

This study tests the predictive associations between externalizing behaviors and internalizing symptoms and examines the mediating roles of social competence, parent-child conflicts, and academic achievement. Using youth-, parent-, and teacher-reported longitudinal data on a sample of 523 boys and 460 girls from late childhood to early…

The goal of this study was to examine the ability of friendship to moderate the association between behavioral risk and peer victimization for girls with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; n = 140) and comparison girls (n = 88) in a 5-week naturalistic summer camp setting. Participants were an ethnically and socioeconomically diverse…