What does it mean
to be social?
About me…..
Alison
Schroeder
Speech &
Language Therapist
& Primary School
Teacher
www.sociallyspeaking.co.nz
Speech &
Language
/Occupational
Therapy
Assessments
Kids
Club/Teen
Zone and
Wild Cats
Individual
therapy
Home/School
Support
Social Thinking
Michelle Garcia Winner
www.socialthinking.com
The Journal of Autism and
Developmental Disorders published a
report on methodologies specifically
addressing deficits in the social thinking
process, finding that they are successful
at teaching the ability to interact socially
in people with social limitations who have
near-normal to way above-normal
intelligence.
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Process social thinking
differently
May be highly intelligent
May not intuitively learn the
nuances of social
communication
The roots of the social thinking
tree may not be so strong
Social Understanding
behaviour is
inappropriate
Don’t fully
understand
the
inappropriateness
of their behaviour
impacts on how
others feel about
them
Difficulty
seeing the
“gestalt”
Cannot be assumed
that a student
understands how
their behaviour is
linked to the
consequences
Cannot be assumed
that a student
understands how
their behaviour
affects the
perspective of others
The sum of the parts = the whole
Behaviour
Emotional
Impact of
behaviour
on others
How
student
feels about
themselves
To be ‘social’ we need to consider and respond to
the perceived thoughts and emotions of others.
We think
about
people
Affects our
own
emotions
Social
Thinking
Affects
how others
respond to
us
Affects
how we
behave
Affects
how others
feel
Social thinking happens....
when you
are alone
Writing an
email
at the
gym
Computer
games
when you are
with other
people
when you are
being quiet in
a group of
people
In the
supermarket
when you are
reading a
book or
watching t.v.
Social
Networking
Face book
Standing still
“Might not
like people”
“New”
“Angry”
“Shy”
“Anxious”
“Don’t
understand”
“Talking about
something that
they are not
interested in”
“Don’t know
what to say”
Vs
Expected
behaviours
Unexpected
behaviours
Expected
behaviours
Help a person to learn to be seen in a positive
light by others.
People have ‘normal’ thoughts about you
Workshop
Classroom
Hanging out
Expected Behaviours
Toilet humour
Constantly
change
according to
age, culture,
situation and
familiarity
Frustration
Laughing
Friendships
5 years
“Do you want
to play?”
11 years –
Does he look
cool? Does
he live near
me?
19 years –
based on
common
ideas and
beliefs
Unexpected
behaviours
People can have uncomfortable or unusual
thoughts about person
Religion
Wedding
dress
Mini Golf
Thoughts
Opinions
Judgements
No one wants really wants to judge but we all do it
without thinking – e.g. appearance, things people
say and how they act
Teach the
social brain to
figure out
other’s points
of view
Big jigsaw
puzzle that
never ends
Better
problem
solving how to
react and
respond
2003 Research Frostig Center
of California
Recognising
and accepting
Strengths and
weaknesses
Self
awareness
Personality
Self esteem
Friendship
C S Lewis
“Friendship is
unnecessary
like
”
philosophy, like art.
It has no survival
value; rather, it is
one of those things
that give value to
survival
r
Developing Friendships and
Relationships
• Friendship even for the most
capable of us, requires hard work
• Depends on a foundation of many
skills built upon previously acquired
skills
• Learner needs to understand the
function of that skill on a personal
level and how it applies to their life
People who make us feel
good about ourselves
• We want to share space/time with
• Consider as friendly and over time
think of as friends
• Close friends do this over and over
over periods of time
• Close friends share common
interests, trust each other and enjoy
being with that person
Friends
• A friend is someone you feel pretty
good about being around
• Real friends make you feel like you
have something to offer them
• Feeling good with another person is
difficult to define
• Not simple – have to show interest
in them and them in you
Social Memory
We don’t
remember exactly
what people say
or do to us but we
do remember how
they make us feel
The importance of
relationships can
not be
underestimated
We all have the
desire to belong to
and/or need peer
affiliation
Lack of social
acceptance is
harmful to self
esteem
Professor Haslam,
University of Exeter
Better for
person’s
health and
wellbeing
Can provide better
protection against
memory loss and
effects of aging
than many
medicines
Being part of
a social
group
We are social
animals who
live and have
evolved to live
in social
groups
Indispensable
part of who we
are and what
we need to
lead rich and
fulfilling lives
Five year study of 650 stroke patients
(Professor Haslam, University of Exeter)
• Those part of
• Social isolation
close-knit social
doubled the risk
group were
of a secondary,
significantly less
life-threatening
likely to suffer a
event e.g. heart
second lifeattack
threatening
problem over a
given period of
time
I like to be alone...
• We are all members of the human
race and in our society we have to
interact with others in order to
survive
• Need to balance time alone/social
interaction. We all have different
levels
Developing the root system
Self
awareness
Learning
about
others
Give and
take
Supporting
others
Calendars
and
timetables
Structured
and timed
activities
Me time and
We time
Organisation
Calendars
and
timetables
Structured
and timed
activities
Me time and
We time
Organisation
Games
Playgrounds
Play dates
Communication
Teenagers
“I would that there were
no age between ten and
twenty three.. For there
is nothing in between
but getting wenches
with child, wronging the
ancientry,
stealing, fighting…”
Shakespeare (The Winter’s Tale; Act III)
Social thinking
• Think about
people near us
• What do they
feel about what
you’re saying?
• Try to remember
• What are you
what we know
doing to show
about them
you are
interested?
Emotions/Emotional
Regulation
Emotional meaning is
expressed:
55% facial, postural,
and gestural
38% tone of voice
(Mehrabrian, reported in Nowicki & Duke 1992)
Think with your eyes
• Lets others know you are paying
attention
• Have to watch to figure out what
they are saying/meaning
e.g. Look at clock – thinking about
time
Guy looking at girl – thinking she’s
cute
Eyes
• Constant eye contact = creepy
• Generally look for a second or two
then look away. Keep looking
back to capture more information
Language
• Helps explain our point of view,
share feelings, opinions and won
thoughts on the world.
• People only want to consider what
we have to say about things if we
don’t offend people who are
listening
• Avoid download
Practice
• Make mistakes – • Learn to laugh
we all do
at oneself
• All misjudge
• Even those
social situations
good at social
or motives from
skills mess it up
time to time
from time to
time
Teens
• Dinner
• Organisation –
emailing/texting
• Quiz night
• Games
evenings
• Specific social
skills
• Joke telling
What does it mean
to be social?
To be ‘social’ we need to consider and respond to
the perceived thoughts and emotions of others.