Recommendations for behavior analysts regarding the implementation of Social Stories for individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder
Social Stories have weak evidence—use only as a brief add-on to stronger, skill-building procedures.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Leaf et al. (2020) read every Social Story paper they could find. They wrote a plain-language guide for BCBAs.
The authors did not run new kids. They judged the quality of past work and listed red flags.
What they found
Most Social Story studies break basic design rules. Small samples, no control, vague goals.
The team says use the tool only when you can defend it with data.
How this fits with other research
Kokina et al. (2010) pooled single-subject data and saw only tiny gains. Leaf warns the same: stories alone do little.
Leaf et al. (2012) ran an A-B comparison. Teaching interaction (BST) beat Social Stories 18 skills to 4. Leaf echoes: pick stronger methods first.
Camilleri et al. (2024) mined 856 app users and found digital stories help young verbal girls most. Leaf’s caution still stands—method still matters even when the page is on a tablet.
Perez et al. (2015) added FCT and matched the story to the function of the problem. Behavior dropped and mands rose. Leaf nods: that pairing is the kind of careful tweak they want to see.
Why it matters
Your treatment plan should not rest on a flimsy story. Read Leaf’s red-flag list before you write one. If you still use a Social Story, pair it with BST or FCT, track data, and plan to fade it. Better yet, teach the skill live and save the story for preview only.
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Audit one client’s Social Story—check for baseline, control, and generalization data; replace with BST if missing.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
Social Stories have been implemented and evaluated clinically for individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Social Stories are an intervention where an interventionist writes a story that describes a situation and the behaviors that the learner should display within that situation. Researchers have conducted literature reviews on Social Stories and in the majority of these reviews have found serious methodological flaws (e.g., Leaf et al., 2015; Styles, 2011; Reynhout & Carter, 2011). Yet behavior analysts continue to endorse, recommend, and implement Social Stories for individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. The purpose of this paper is to briefly review the literature on Social Stories, provide recommendations to behavior analysts on the use of Social Stories, and discuss how to best proceed when Social Stories are recommended in clinical settings.
Behavioral Interventions, 2020 · doi:10.1002/bin.1736