Article Summary Social Stories

Full APA Citation:

Samuels, R., & Stansfield, J. (2012). The effectiveness of social stories to develop social
interactions with adults with characteristics of autism spectrum disorder. British Journal of
Learning Disabilities,40(4), 272-285. doi:10.1111/j.1468-3156.2011.00706.x

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Overview of Topic/Article:
According to Carol Gray, the creator of Social Stories, Social Stories are:
a social learning tool that supports the safe and meaningful exchange of information between parents,
professionals, and people with autism of all ages. The people who develop Social Stories are referred
to as Authors, and they work on behalf of a child, adolescent, or adult with autism, the Audience.

Previous research on the topic of Social Stories has found that they can be a beneficial and
effective intervention for multiple reasons for children with ASD. Much research has been completed in
this area with success, giving Social Stories the title of a Promising Practice Intervention. This research
article looks at the effectiveness of social stories when used with adults diagnosed with Autism
Spectrum Disorder in developing social interaction skills in specific situations. The research will enhance
previous research by adding to the age range of benefit for social stories. Adults with ASD continue to
struggle with social skills; research such as this will benefit therapists on how to help these adults with
research based interventions. There were 4 young men in this study between the ages of 17-32; 3 of the
young men were diagnosed with ASD, 1 had characteristics of ASD.

Key Points/Findings [bulleted list]:

The adults and staff enjoyed using the social stories

Overall, results confirm a positive impact of social stories when used with adults with ASD.
Social stories can be an effective tool for changing behavior and building social skills
temporarily.

Implications to Current/Future Practitioners [bulleted list]:

Replication studies should be completed, as this research lacks in maintenance and prolonged
use of social stories to improve behavior and social skills over time.
A limit of this study, required support staff to collect data for the researchers. Some pertinent
data may have been lost, while they were performing other important tasks of daily living for
these young men.
Studies completed with adults diagnosed with ASD are extremely rare and important. Too many
adults with ASD lack in the support they need when they graduate high school and college.