Dr. Pearson's Blog

Specializing in providing therapy and evaluations for children, adolescents, and adults coping with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism/Asperger's Disorder, Anxiety, Depression, and behavioral issues.

SOCIAL DIFFICULTIES AMONG CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS-WHAT CAN PARENTS DO?

Bossy-anxious Children
- Help identify when your child is anxious about socializing
- Provide encouragement and positive reinforcement to build self- esteem and reduce the need to be overly controlling.
- Identify when your child is being bossy in the moment during family interactions so they can learn the impact of their behavior in a safer, less judgmental environment.

Intrusive Children
- Provide redirection when they are imposing themselves on others in order to decrease the negative impact of their intrusiveness on peers.
- Teach using visual concepts (i.e. don’t pop my balloon)

Inflexible or Rigid Children
-Teach these children about compromise using role plays and practicing with a variety of social scenarios at home in order to encourage flexibility.
- Use a system of reinforcement for target or appropriate behaviors.

Explosive, Argumentative, or Easily Frustrated Children
- Practice coping with disappointment, managing anger, using words to express feelings, and taking a time-out to calm down before anger gets out of control (use anger thermometer to identify degree of anger).
- Discuss safe places and ways to calm down at home, school, in public, or during peer interactions.

Inattentive or Off-Task Children
- Help these children learn to identify when they are more likely to “space out” and what they can do to redeem themselves if “caught in the act”.

Disruptive or Impulsive Children
- Teach these children strategies to manage their impulsivity, including fidget toys, internal speech, and counting to 10 before speaking.

Difficulty Interpreting Social Cues
- Children with ADHD or Autism Spectrum Disorder often experience difficulty interpreting the cues of peers. They will miss the cue that a peer is bored with their incessant rambling about a topic, as they interpret a yawn literally to mean fatigue as opposed to boredom. Another child may interpret a bump in the halls as “on purpose” instead of an accident, resulting in possible conflict or physical confrontation.
- Practice reviewing scenarios with these children, as they do not inherently understand the cues as well as peers and may need practice and rote memorization to help manage these social situations.