A Pilot Randomised Control Trial of Digitally-Mediated Social Stories for Children on the Autism Spectrum

Abstract

Social stories is a widely used intervention for children on the autism spectrum, particularly within an educational context. To date, systematic reviews and meta analyses of the research evaluating social stories has produced mixed results, often due to a lack of methodological rigour and variability in the development and delivery of the social stories. To address the gap in methodological rigour, a pilot Randomised Control Trial (RCT) was conducted, incorporating a social stories intervention group (n = 9 children on the autism spectrum) and an attentional control group who received a poem (n = 6 children on the autism spectrum) using a digital platform to address variability. Digitally-mediated social stories were found to be effective in producing beneficial changes in behaviour outcomes, which were sustained at a six-week follow up.

Digitally-Mediated Social Stories Support Children on the Autism Spectrum Adapting to a Change in a ‘Real-World’ Context

“…A limitation is that the study did not index the children's experience with traditional SS formats and this may reflect a general preference for using digital technology rather than a specific preference for digitallymediated SS interventions. Digital technology has been argued to support a consistent, structured, personalised learning environment enabling repetition, direct feedback and control over the learning experience (Constantin et al 2017;Hanrahan et al 2020;Moore 2008;Odom et al 2003;Ozdemir, 2010;Segers and Verhoeven 2005;Smith et al 2020;Yildirim et al 2001). The extent to which these features support a preference for slower, explicit, prompted processing in autism (see Brosnan et al 2016Brosnan et al , 2017, provides a framework for future research to identify whether digitally-mediated SS interventions are particularly effective for children on the autism spectrum.…”

“…Importantly too the teachers and children were not blinded and were aware of the nature of the study. Recently, Hanrahan et al (2020) identified benefits of SS when compared to a control condition of reading the child a poem.…”

“…Digital technology can provide a more consistent and structured environment for the story, enabling repetition and direct feedback, and can offer the child more control over the learning experience. Digital technology can also enhance visual support, self-monitoring, and rewards, all of which can be personalised to the child (Constantin et al 2017;Hanrahan et al 2020;Moore 2008;Odom et al 2003;Ozdemir 2010;Segers and Verhoeven 2005;Smith et al 2020;Yildirim et al 2001). Tablets, such as the iPad, have been used as a SS intervention for children on the autism spectrum through showing 'social movies' based upon the criteria for SS (Flores et al 2014;Mowling et al 2018).…”

“…Thus the Stories Online for Autism (SOFA-app) application has been co-developed with the autistic community to enhance fidelity for community-delivered SS interventions through providing appropriate support for practitioners and parents/caregivers (Constantin et al 2017;Hanrahan et al 2020;Smith et al 2020). An opportunity arose to use the SOFA-app with a group of children on the autism spectrum who needed support adapting to the same upcoming change.…”

Effectiveness of Social Stories on Social Skills for Elementary-Aged Students with Autism: A Literature Review

“…The stories consist of specific types of sentences, such as descriptive sentences describing a setting or activity step by step, directive sentences describing an expected student response, and perspective sentences describing the reactions of others' and they can be supported by visual illustrations (Gray & Garand, 1993). Hanrahan et al (2020) provide a social story about sharing toys written for children aged 4 to 10 years: My name is ___. At school I like to play with toys.…”