Conversational skills for autistic adolescents: teaching assertiveness in naturalistic game settings

A naturalistic social skills training program was used to teach assertive responses to three autistic adolescents. Training and assessment of positive and negative assertions occurred in the context of two game situations-a card game and a ball game. Training consisted of modeling and behavioral rehearsal prior to each game, with tokens delivered contingent on assertive responses. Evaluation of training effects was accomplished in a multiple baseline across response classes. The results demonstrated the effectiveness of the procedure in generating high levels of positive and negative assertions that maintained across a 4.5-month follow-up interval. This in vivo procedure for teaching social behaviors permits the concurrent acquisition of assertive responses and leisure behaviors, two skills that are of special importance in improving the quality of autistic youth's experiences with their peers.