Evidence Based Practice Symposium - McMaster University

Issue Part 2: #: Development [Date] of Self-Reflection Scale and Clinician Outcome Measure
Dolor Sit Amet
Introduction
To address the limitations identified in the SSRS in part 1 of
the project, the following tools were developed:
(1) Self-Reflection Scale – the purpose of the scale is to allow
clinicians at the GJCC to ascertain the child’s (8 and under)
perception of their own social skills.
(2) Clinician Outcome Measure – the purpose of the measure
is to allow clinicians at the GJCC to measure changes in
children’s social skills throughout the sessions offered in the
Social Skills Program.
Methods
The Self-Reflection Scale was created with reference to a 4point
Likert scale self-report measure developed by another
member of the Ontario Association of Children’s
Rehabilitation Centers (OACRS) (A. DeFinney, personal
communication, Feb. 28, 2012). Changes were made to the
scale so that questions were aligned with the GJCC social
skills program and reflected previous research uncovered
during the literature search in part 1, i.e. a list of commonly
observed behaviours used in social skills assessments.
With respect to the Clinician Outcome Measure, clinicians at
the GJCC requested that a Likert scale be used since it would
provide an ordinal measurement of subjective clinical
evaluations (K. Lee & S. McBean, personal communication,
March 14, 2012). Therefore, a brief literature review
regarding the ideal number of response categories that should
make up a rating scale was undertaken.
Results and Discussion
The Self-Reflection Scale was created for children below the
age of 8 to report on their perception of their own social
skills.
With regards to the Clinician Outcome Measure, the evidence
suggested that overall reliability, validity, and discriminating
power are significantly higher for Likert scales with response
categories of 7 points (Preston & Colman, 2000). The
Clinician Outcome Measure consists of the following:
(1) Three sections – one for each social skills group offered
within the GJCC Social Skills Program; and
(2) Two scales – one that measures the extent to which the
child can describe a particular social skill (Descriptive Scale),
and one that measures the degree of independence the child
has when performing a particular social skill (Implementation
Scale).
Conclusion
The SSRS met 7/7 criteria, but had 2 limitations that were
addressed through the creation of a Self-Reflection Scale and
Clinician Outcome Measure.
Future Directions
Future directions may include the following:
(1) Trial the SSRS for the Social Skills Program (currently
being done at GJCC);
(2) Trial the Clinician Outcome Measure for the Social Skills
Program (currently being done at GJCC);
(3) Trial the Self-Reflection Scale for the Social Skills
Program (currently being done at GJCC);
(4) If the SSRS is an appropriate outcome measure for the
Social Skills Program, use the SSRS to determine the
effectiveness of the Social Skills Program;
(5) Determine the reliability and validity of the Clinician
Outcome Measure; and
(6) Determine the reliability and validity of the Self-Reflection
Scale.
References
Castorina, L.L., & Negri, L.M. (2011). The inclusion of
siblings in social skills training groups for boys with
Asperger syndrome. Journal of Autism and Developmental
Disorders, 41, 73-81.
Cotugno, A.J. (2009) Social competence and social skills
training and intervention for children with Autism Spectrum
Disorders. Journal Autism and Developmental Disorders,
39, 1268-1277.
Koenig, K., White, S.W., Pachler, M., Lau, M., Lewis, M.,
Klin, A., & Scahill, L. (2010). Promoting social skill
development in children with pervasive developmental
disorders: A feasibility and efficacy study. Journal of
Autism and Developmental Disorders, 40, 1209-1218.
Preston, C.C., & Colman, A.M. (2000). Optimal number of
response categories in rating scales: reliability, validity,
discriminating power, and respondent preferences. Acta
Psychologica, 104, 1-15.
Reichow, B. & Volkmar, F.R. (2010). Social skills
interventions for individuals with autism: Evaluation for
evidence-based practices within a best evidence synthesis
framework. Journal of Autism and Developmental
Disorders, 40, 149-166.
White, S. W., Koenig, K., & Scahill, L. (2007). Social skills
development in children with autism spectrum disorders: A
review of the intervention research. Journal of Autism
Developmental Disorders, 37, 1858-1868.
World Health Organization (WHO). (2001). International
Classification of functioning, disability, and health
(IFC). Geneva, Switzerland: World Health
Organization.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Kara Lee and Scott McBean for their
enthusiasm and guidance throughout this project and for
allowing us to become involved with the Social Skills Program.
We appreciate the input provided by Kerstin Blazina and Kate
Clower, Speech Language Pathologists, during the
development of the descriptive scale for the Clinician Outcome
Measure. Finally, it was a pleasure to work alongside the
dedicated staff at GJCC.
Link to Prezi
http://prezi.com/tzss6jsazy99/social-skills-outcome-tool/
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