The ability to engage in positive social interactions is an important goal for young children with developmental disabilities (DDs). Peer-mediated intervention (PMI), one category of interventions often employed with those who show social skill deficits, involves use of typical peers who live model appropriate behaviors. A second frequent category…

Children represent their efforts to make sense of their social worlds in various ways. Having, making and being friends are common foci of children's interactions and identity development. These efforts may become visible through analysing video-recorded snippets of children's play. In particular, repeated viewing of episodes of children's…

Researchers have demonstrated the positive outcomes of using video self-modeling (VSM) with students with emotional behavior disorders (EBDs). VSM typically refers to teacher-created videos demonstrating desired skills or behaviors where the student is the video model performing the skill at a level higher than his or her typical display. The…

This research adopted a qualitative methodology to investigate the reported beliefs and pedagogical practices relating to infant peer relationships held by three early childhood infant educators. Thematic analysis was used to derive commonalties and differences that reflected these educators' views and practices about children's early peer…

"Video modeling" is one of the recognized methods used in the training and teaching of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The model's theoretical base stems from Albert Bandura's (1977; 1986) social learning theory in which he asserts that children can learn many skills and behaviors observationally through modeling. One can…

We investigate the development of expert identities through the use of the sociocultural perspective of learning as participating in a community of practice. An ethnographic case study of biophysics graduate students focuses on the experiences the students have in their research group meetings. The analysis illustrates how the communities of…

Background: Children with autism spectrum disorder experience difficulty initiating (IJA) and responding to joint attention (RJA), which is critical to engagement in social interactions. The adult role in developing joint attention is widely accepted, but measurement of outcomes from adult training is rarely reported. Method: Using a single case…

The ability to argue and to create alliances with peers are important social competencies for all children, including those who have speech, language and communication needs. In this study, we investigated the management of arguments and alliances by a group of 5-year-old male friends, one of whom has a persisting speech difficulty (PSD). Twelve…

Social interaction is a core deficit in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Therefore, parents and teachers need effective interventions to support students with ASD. This synthesis provides a quantitative analysis of single-subject studies that examine interventions to support social interactions in children with ASD. Results suggest…

Online courses are increasingly using asynchronous video communication. However, little is known about how asynchronous video communication influences students' communication patterns. This study presents four narratives of students with varying characteristics who engaged in asynchronous video communication. The extrovert valued the efficiency of…

Background: Infants and preschoolers with ASD show impairment in their responses to other people's distress relative to children with other developmental delays and typically developing children. This deficit is expected to disrupt social interactions, social learning, and the formation of close relationships. Response to distress has not been…

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) has emerged as one of the most effective empirically based strategies for instructing individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Four ABA-based strategies that have been found effective are video modeling, visual strategies, social script fading, and task analysis. Individuals with ASD often struggle with…