THE EFFECTS OF VERBAL AND MUSICAL SOCIAL STORIES ON CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR IN CHILDREN WITH AUTISM

Abstract

One of the defining characteristics of children with autism is difficulty with social behavior. Most of the environments of a child's daily life, and especially the school setting, require appropriate social skills. Numerous studies have shown that social stories are an effective method of teaching appropriate behaviors to children with autism and increasing these behaviors in a variety of settings. Several studies have also shown that children with autism show a preference for musical versus verbal stimuli. This study explores the effects of using social stories set to music on the classroom behavior of two elementary age children with severe autism. A single subject design was used to measure the effectiveness of three treatment conditions: a no treatment control condition, traditional verbal social stories, and social stories set to a familiar tune. Results for the first participant were assessed on a percentage of audible attempts to communicate. Results for the second student were assessed on the frequency of out-of-seat behavior. The results showed the verbal social story to be a moderately effective intervention, while the musical story did not prove to be effective.