Advanced group treatment for developmentally disabled adults with social skill deficits

Objective: This social work research evaluates the effectiveness of an adva nced, experimental treatment program for improving social skills with 6 dev elopmentally disabled adults in a vocational training project. Method: The effectiveness of the group treatment program was evaluated using multiple b aseline designs replicated for 6 participants across six social skills. The intervention was developed in a previous study, and the skills were select ed using a needs assessment. Results: Results were mixed and treatment gain s from baseline to treatment phases were inconsistent across skills and par ticipants. A 1-year follow-up assessment revealed that posttreatment skill levels were usually maintained. Conclusions: These results only partially s upport the effectiveness of the group treatment program Possible explanatio ns for this conclusion are given, and clinical implications for social work ers are discussed.