ABSTRACT
Social skills are important for the academic success and emotional well-being of children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The context of gameplay is not only potentially enjoyable for this population, but it has also been used to teach autistic children and adolescents social skills. Behavioral skill training (BST) and in situ training (IST) have also been found effective in teaching social skills to individuals with ASD. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of BST and IST in teaching social skills to children and adolescents using a game format and assess whether these results generalized to gameplay outside of training sessions and with other game partners. This study included 3 adolescents and recorded their game-related social skill performance during in situ assessments in baseline, BST, in IST, generalization, and maintenance probes. Behavioral skill training was moderately effective in increasing game-related social skills. In situ training was effective in increasing game-related social skills to criterion both with researchers and novel game partners.