Graduate Program

Communication Disorders and Sciences

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Semester of Degree Completion

2011

Thesis Director

Tina Veale

Thesis Committee Member

Trina Becker

Thesis Committee Member

Beth Bergstrom

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to investigate the impact that siblings and peers have on the social skills of children with autism. Subjects included six children with autism between the ages of five and eight years of age. Subjects were observed playing with a typically-developing sibling for two one-hour sessions. Half of the subjects were observed playing with a typically-developing peer for two one-hour sessions. During each structured play session, toys from a preselected set were presented one at a time. The children were instructed to play together with no further adult interaction. Data were analyzed for joint attention, initiation of interaction, imitation, and turn-taking. Results indicated no significant difference in the amount of joint attention, initiation, imitation, or turntaking when playing with siblings versus peers. This outcome suggested that siblings and peers are capable of eliciting a comparable number of social interactions from children with autism in a controlled environment. Results also suggested that simple interventions, such as structuring play sessions, yield social skills from children with autism.

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