The Potential of Video in the Promotion of Social Competence in Children and Adolescents

Abstract

Video training has practical and representational advantages that make it well-suited pedagogically and methodologically for use by investigators developing school-based social competence promotion programs. Pedgogically, video's visual representational medium and attention-focusing capacities help to promote the effective presentation of the process-based reciprocal flow of social understanding and behavior. Methodologically, video enables researchers to standardize training approaches and thus to evaluate more accurately the effectiveness of a given intervention, including the ability to assess the hypothesized processes of skill learning, as well as the social outcomes of such learning. In addition, video is readily accessible for classroom use. As such, it has potential both as a powerful stimulus for learning, and also as the foundation of an intervention that can be both easily disseminated and systematically evaluated. The empirical and theoretical bases of social competence video training in social learning and social information-processing theories are examined, and an agenda is set for developing and evaluating future intervention work in this area.

A brief social belonging intervention improves academic outcomes for minoritized high school students.

“…There were four reasons for this approach: First, there is a substantial body of evidence supporting the effectiveness of taped interviews of upper level students for shifting more novice students’ causal attributions for adversity experienced in academic contexts (e.g., Menec, Perry, Struthers, Schonwetter, Hechter, & Eichholz, 1994; Wilson & Linville, 1982; see Table 1 in Wilson, Damiani, & Shelton, 2002). Second, the audiovisual modality might be more effective at conveying social information, particularly with adolescent audiences, because videos offer a wider range of emotional and social information than does pure text, they stimulate motivation and attention, and they boost recall (Elias & Maher, 1983; Harwood & Weissberg, 1987). Third, text-only materials run the risk of being perceived as just another class assignment, triggering frustration in students, especially those with a history of poor academic performance (Finn, 1989).…”

School-based interventions to prevent substance use among inner-city minority adolescents.

“…Empirical evidence supports the use of videotapes to enhance students' attentional, retentional, and conceptualization processes (Elias, 1983;Greenfield & Beagles-Roos, 1988;Harwood & Weissberg, 1987;Newcomb & Collins, 1979). Particularly with students who are less academically skilled-and thus, at higher risk for substance abuse (Barnes & Welte, 1986;Jessor, Chase, & Donavan, 1980)-the use of videotape with its attention-focusing capabilities (instant playback, visual focusing, and explicit verbal labeling) appears well suited for teaching skills.…”

Using the Mass Media as a Population Level Strategy to Strengthen Parenting Skills

“…Research derived from Bandura's (1977Bandura's ( , 1986 cognitive social learning theory has established the efficacy of modeling, both via video and live models, in promoting behavior change (Harwood & Weissberg, 1987). Video modeling has been used successfully to teach a variety of complex skills across many psychological and educational applications (Harwood & Weissberg, 1987) and provides demonstration of skills not possible in written self-help material (Flay, 1987). Thus, it is well suited to the teaching of nonverbal material, particularly the reciprocal flow of social interaction (Dodge, Pettit, McClaskey, & Brown, 1986).…”