A multiple-baseline-across-students design was used to investigate the effects of multiple-exemplar self-instructional training on the acquisition and generalization of conversational interaction of 4 high school students with mental retardation. The multiple-exemplar component of the model consisted of (a) several peers without disabilities teaching the use of a self-instructional social skills strategy across diverse examples of conversational interactions and across two settings and (b) assessing the generalized effects of training across additional peers and one setting. Findings indicated that peers were effective in teaching the multiple-exemplar strategy and that peer training was associated with systematic increases in generalized conversational interactions with familiar and unfamiliar peers with and without disabilities in an additional setting. Social validation data indicated that following multiple-exemplar training, all participants' performances approximated those of general education students and was judged by others to have improved.

The purpose of this study was to extend the empirical literature by identifying and socially validating strategies that support the transition from school to adult life. A three-step process was conducted: (a) reviewing 113 empirical articles that addressed secondary transition, (b) developing a candidate list of all support strategies that were empirically supported in the literature, and (c) conducting a national survey of 54 researchers who had published studies in the area of secondary transition (response rate = 92%) to establish the social validity of the proposed list of support strategies. Results of the survey corroborated multiple strategies that support students in the transition to adult life (e.g., family and peer support, student choice and preference, student self-determination). Findings are compared to those derived from the literature review and implications for research and practice are discussed.