Social Competence: A Developmental Perspective

Behavior Problems and Social Competence in Fragile X Syndrome: A Systematic Review

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) causes intellectual disability and is the known leading cause of autism. Common problems in FXS include behavior and social problems. Along with syndromic characteristics and autism comorbidity, environmental factors might influence these difficulties. This systematic review focuses on the last 20 years of studies concerning behavior and social problems in FXS, considering environmental and personal variables that might influence both problems. Three databases were reviewed, leading to fifty-one studies meeting the inclusion criteria. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) problems remain the greatest behavior problems, with behavioral problems and social competence being stable during the 20 years. Some developmental trajectories might have changed due to higher methodological control, such as aggressive behavior and attention problems. The socialization trajectory from childhood to adolescence remains unclear. Comorbidity with autism in individuals with FXS increased behavior problems and worsened social competence profiles. At the same time, comparisons between individuals with comorbid FXS and autism and individuals with autism might help define the comorbid phenotype. Environmental factors and parental characteristics influenced behavior problems and social competence. Higher methodological control is needed in studies including autism symptomatology and parental characteristics. More studies comparing autism in FXS with idiopathic autism are needed to discern differences between conditions.

Preschoolers' Social Behavior: Teachers' and Parents' Assessments

This study explored the use of a multi-rater social behavior scale with a diverse sample of preschoolers to test the influence of demographic, family status, and language ability variables on the rated frequency and functional importance of prosocial and problem behaviors. Major results from the teachers' ratings of behavior indicated (a) significant differences between boys and girls in that the average girl exhibited more prosocial behaviors and the average boy more problem behaviors; (b) significant differences for language ability; those preschoolers with excellent language ability showed more prosocial skills and fewer problem behaviors than did children with average or poor language; and (c) differences among families depending on the work status of mothers and fathers. The results of the parents' ratings indicated similar patterns as teachers and also suggested differences in social behavior between White and Black preschoolers. Although the overall perceptions of preschoolers' social behavior were similar as rated by parents and teachers, the correlation between their frequency and importance ratings on specific behavior items were moderately low at best. These data were interpreted to reinforce the practice of acquiring cross-informant ratings of preschoolers and to support the validity of the Social Skills Rating System.

In-School Adaptive Behavior: Assessment Domains of Behavior Rating Scales and Child Characteristics

This study examined the in-school adaptive behavior of 283 randomly selected black, Hispanic and white 7-year-old children with two teacher behavior rating scales, Brown and Hammill's Behavior Rating Profile (BRP) and Mercer's Teacher Questionnaire (MTQ). Multiple regression analyses showed that the single best predictor of school functioning was MTQ competence ratings. Sociability as measured by the MTQ was only moderately related to school functioning. The BRP, a rating scale of behavior problems, appears to be a measure of social conformity in that it correlated most highly with the MTQ social conformity score. The BRP did not correlate highly with school functioning (either grades or standardized achievement test scores). Multivariate analyses indicated that child characteristics (gender and ethnic group) arc strongly related to teacher ratings of adaptive behavior. Specific correlations between adaptive behavior ratings and school functioning and the patterns of correlations varied across ethnic groups. The implications of these systematic rating differences were discussed in relation to the mandates for assessment of adaptive behavior and for nonbiased assessment. It is apparent that sociocultural background characteristics must be considered explicitly in the decision making process.

Children's Adaptive Behaviors: Measure and Source Generalizability

This study examined the in- and out-of-school adaptive behavior of 154 randomly selected Black, Hispanic and White 7-year-old children. Six mea sures of adaptive behavior were used, two ad ministered to each of three sources of information (parents, teachers, and children themselves)— Adaptive Behavior Inventory for Children; Mer cer's Teacher Questionnaire; Children's Adaptive Behavior Scale; and Behavior Rating Profile- Parent, Teacher, and Child. Overall, there was a consistent pattern of within-source correlations among adaptive behavior ratings higher than between-source correlations for the parent and teacher measures. That pattern was particularly clear for the minority samples, an indication of the relative independence of children's adaptive be haviors in home and school settings and the need to obtain information from both sources. The two children's measures were not correlated with each other and were not related strongly to other measures of adaptive behavior from other informa tion sources. Examination of intercorrelations among adaptive behavior measures and between adaptive behavior and indices of ability and school achievement provided some evidence of domains that were being addressed by these measures, with indications of both convergent and divergent validity for the various measures. Finally, multivariate analyses resulted in gender and ethnic group differences, and examination of correlation matrices for each ethnic group suggested possible differential meaning of adaptive behavior scores for the three groups.

School Social Behavior Scales: an adaptation study of the Portuguese version of the social competence scale from SSBS-2

This study analyses the psychometric proprieties of a Portuguese version of the social competence scale from the School Social Behavior Scales (SSBS-2, Merrell, 2002). It is a rating instrument of children and adolescents behavior, to be used by teachers and other school personnel. This scale includes 3 subscales: self-management/compliance, peer relations and academic behavior. In our first sample, 175 teachers rated 344 students from grade 1 through 12. On the second sample 13 teachers rated 251 3rd and 4th grades students. The results from the Portuguese adaptation support the multidimensional structure of the social competence scale from the SSBS-2, although an alternative model demonstrated a better fit to the data than the model originally proposed by the author. The scale showed good internal consistency and good intercorrelations between subscales, as well as between subscales and the total scale. The final model was well replicated in the second sample. These results encourage us to pursue the SSBS-2 Portuguese adaptation, in order to provide a useful and validated instrument for the assessment of social competence and for educational interventions.

Klinische Kinderpsychologie:

Zusammenfassung. Der Übersichtsbeitrag geht auf Konzepte der sozialen Kompetenz ein, die eine Grundlage für die Interventionsplanung in der Klinischen Kinderpsychologie bilden. Neuere Ansätze der klinischen Diagnostik zur sozialen Kompetenz werden skizziert. Aus der Vielzahl der Kompetenztrainings werden einige Vorgehensweisen (z.B. Rollenspiele zur Vermittlung sozialer Fertigkeiten) dargestellt. Eine besondere Bedeutung besitzen soziale Kompetenztrainings bei der Behandlung sozialer Ängste und sozialer Unsicherheit. Auf die Wirksamkeit sozialer Kompetenztrainings wird abschließend eingegangen.

Effect of parental factors on social skills of preschool children with craniofacial anomalies

This study investigated the parenting stress and style and the social networks of parents with preschool children with and without craniofacial anomalies (CFA), and the effect of these factors on the child's level of social skill. Fifty-two families participated in the study. No differences were found between the CFA and control groups on level of parenting stress, parenting style, or social network characteristics. However, parents with children with visible defects found their social support networks more helpful, and advocated a more nurturing parenting style. For the CFA group, parenting stress predicted child level of social skill. These results underscore the importance of investigating the interaction between parent and child factors.

Social skills of preschoolers with and without craniofacial anomalies

The study compared the social skills of preschoolers with and without craniofacial anomalies (CFA). Fifty-two children completed self-perception and facial expression tasks and a social skills interview. Parents and teachers also rated the children's social skills. Children with CFA gave less friendly responses to hypothetical social situations and were rated as less attractive by graduate students. Girls with CFA reported above average self-perceptions. Patients and teachers rated the children with CFA as having a level of social skills equal to the children without CFA. Different factors were predictive of level of social skills for CFA and control children.