Use of a behavioral art program to improve social skills of two children with autism spectrum disorders

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a behavioral art program in improving social skills for two children with autism in group settings. A multiple probe design across behaviors was used. The results indicated that for both children, the program increased the percentages of spontaneous verbal communications, presentation of artwork, and eye contact. One of the children showed a concurrent decrease in off-seat behavior. Both children maintained high levels of performance on the target social skills three weeks after the treatment. Social skills were generalized to different settings with another instructor and an unfamiliar audience. The increased scores on both children's adaptive behaviors indicated that both the teachers and the parents perceived that the art program was effective in improving the children's social skills.