A controlled social skills training for children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders.
Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) have significant social skills deficits. The efficacy of a child friendship training (CFT) versus a delayed treatment control (DTC) was assessed for 100 children ages 6 to 12 years with FASD. Children in the CFT showed clear evidence of improvement in their knowledge of appropriate social behavior, and according to parent report, CFT resulted in improved social skills and fewer problem behaviors compared with DTC. Gains were maintained at 3-month follow-up. After receiving treatment, the DTC group exhibited similar improvement. Teachers did not report improvement as a function of social skills treatment. The findings suggest that children with FASD benefit from CFT but that these social skills gains may not be observed in the classroom.
O'Connor
Mary J
MJ
Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA. moconnor@mednet.ucla.edu
Frankel
Fred
F
Paley
Blair
B
Schonfeld
Amy M
AM
Carpenter
Erika
E
Laugeson
Elizabeth A
EA
Marquardt
Renee
R
D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D005260:Female; D063647:Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D012920:Social Behavior Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012951:Socialization; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods*