Social Skills: Developing Effective Interpersonal Communication

What can we do to help those who struggle to develop effective social skills?

Social Skills: Developing Effective Interpersonal Communication is a definitive guide to understanding and meeting the needs of those who have difficulty with social skills. Written in a clear and accessible manner, this book provides a theoretical framework to the teaching of social skills alongside a range of practical ideas for practitioners.

The book offers a four-step plan that can be adapted for use with young people or adults who are struggling with any aspect of their social skills. A simple model for assessing social skills is provided, as well as ways to measure the impact of intervention. Full of interesting examples and case studies, it includes discussion of how to teach social skills, how social skills develop through childhood, why they sometimes might not, and why social skills difficulties can have an impact on self-esteem and friendships. It includes a breakdown of social skills into the following areas:

• body language
• eye contact
• listening and paralanguage
• starting and ending conversations
• maintaining conversations
• assertiveness

Written by one of the most well-known Speech and Language therapists in this field and the creator of the internationally successful Talkabout resources, this book provides a key reference for the study of social skills. It will be essential reading for educators, therapists, parents and anyone supporting others in developing communication and social skills.

Table of Contents

1. Social skills: an introduction
2. Body language
3. Eyes and faces
4. Listening and paralanguage
5. Starting and ending conversations
6. Maintaining a conversation
7. Assertiveness
8. Self-esteem
9. Friendship skills
10. The normal development of social skills
11. Autism Spectrum Disorder and social skills
12. Assessing social skills
13. Teaching social skills 1: different approaches and the four step plan to intervention
14. Teaching social skills 2: social skills interventions
15. Teaching social skills 3: developing social skills in schools
16. Teaching social skills 4: the role of parents
17. Evaluation: measuring the effectiveness of social skills interventions