Social Skills Development Competency Flashcards

A CAS specialist notices a student consistently uses a flat affect and avoids eye contact during peer conversations. The MOST appropriate first step is to:

Answer: Conduct a functional assessment to determine the context and function of the behavior

A functional assessment identifies the purpose and context of a behavior before intervention, ensuring that strategies address the actual underlying challenge rather than surface symptoms.

Research consistently shows that social skills interventions for individuals with ASD are MOST effective when they include:

Answer: Skill instruction combined with structured opportunities to practice with peers

The combination of explicit skill instruction with supported, structured peer practice provides both the learning and the rehearsal necessary for meaningful social skill development.

The term 'perspective-taking' in autism social skills training refers to the ability to:

Answer: Understand how another person might think, feel, or perceive a situation

Perspective-taking involves inferring and considering the mental and emotional states of others, a skill closely tied to Theory of Mind that is often a direct target in social skills curricula for ASD.

Which of the following BEST describes a 'social script' as a teaching strategy (distinct from echolalic scripting)?

Answer: A pre-written conversational template taught to individuals with ASD to initiate or maintain interactions

Social scripts used as a teaching strategy are pre-planned phrases or conversational structures intentionally taught to individuals with ASD to help them initiate and navigate social exchanges.

Which factor most threatens the long-term maintenance of newly acquired social skills in individuals with ASD?

Answer: Failure to embed practice in natural environments and routines

Without opportunities to use skills in natural, everyday contexts, social skills learned in structured settings tend to fade because they are not reinforced through real-life social outcomes.

A student with ASD frequently interrupts others and stands too close during conversations. The CAS specialist should address these as:

Answer: Hidden curriculum deficits requiring explicit, structured instruction

Proximity and turn-taking norms are examples of hidden curriculum rules that most people learn implicitly; individuals with ASD typically need these taught directly and systematically.

When planning social skills instruction for a student with ASD, the IEP team should FIRST prioritize goals based on:

Answer: The skills that are most developmentally foundational and functional in the student's natural environments

Effective IEP social skills goals are driven by what is functionally meaningful for the individual across their real-world contexts, starting with foundational skills that support broader social participation.