Long-term social skills group training for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder: a randomized controlled trial.
Stretching social-skills group to 24 weeks gives parents big, lasting reports of improvement, yet school staff still see little change.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team ran a 24-week social skills group called KONTAKT. Kids with autism met weekly in small groups.
Parents and teachers filled out rating scales before, after, and six months later. The kids got usual care or the extra group.
What they found
Parents saw big social gains that lasted six months. Teachers saw almost no change.
Other measures like loneliness or quality of life did not budge.
How this fits with other research
Deckers et al. (2016) and Chester et al. (2019) also found parent-rated gains after shorter groups. U et al. doubled the weeks and got larger effects, showing more time can help.
Gilmore et al. (2022) pooled 16 trials and found the same pattern: parents notice change, teachers rarely do. The new data confirm the gap is real, not a flaw.
Shkel et al. (2025) moved the model younger. They added parent training and saw more peer initiations. Together the studies show social groups work across ages, but you must pick the right dose and add-ons.
Why it matters
If you run social groups, plan for at least six months of meetings. Tell parents their view may improve first. Ask teachers what extra support they need to see the same change on the playground. Track peer initiations yourself to catch real-world use.
Want CEUs on This Topic?
The ABA Clubhouse has 60+ free CEUs — live every Wednesday. Ethics, supervision & clinical topics.
Join Free →Add a brief parent note that explains why they may see change before teachers do.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
Social skills group training (SSGT) is widely used for intellectually able children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Previous studies indicate small to moderate effects on social communication capacities. The duration of most available programs is relatively short, and extended training might lead to further improvement. This randomized controlled trial compared an extended 24-week version of the SSGT program KONTAKT with standard care. The weekly sessions gradually shifted in content from acquisition of new skills to real-world application of the acquired skills. A total of 50 participants with ASD (15 females; 35 males) aged 8-17 years were included. The study was conducted at two child and adolescent psychiatry outpatient units in Sweden. The primary outcome was the Social Responsiveness Scale-Second Edition (SRS-2) rated by parents and blinded teachers. Secondary outcomes included parent- and teacher-rated adaptive behaviors, trainer-rated global functioning and clinical severity, and self-reported child and caregiver stress. Assessments were made at baseline, posttreatment, and at 3-months follow-up. Parent-rated SRS-2 scores indicated large effects posttreatment [- 19.2; 95% CI - 29.9 to - 8.5; p < .001, effect size (ES) = 0.76], which were maintained at follow-up (- 20.7; 95% CI - 31.7 to - 9.7; p < .0001, ES = 0.82). These estimates indicate substantially larger improvement than previously reported for shorter SSGT. However, the effects on teacher-rated SRS-2 and most secondary outcomes did not reach statistical significance. Our results suggest added benefits of extended SSGT training, implying that service providers might reach better results by optimizing the delivery of SSGT.
, 2018 · doi:10.1007/s00787-018-1161-9