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A Systematic Review of Implicit Versus Explicit Social Skills Group Programs in Different Settings for School-Aged Autistic Children and Adolescents.

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Title: A Systematic Review of Implicit Versus Explicit Social Skills Group Programs in Different Settings for School-Aged Autistic Children and Adolescents.
Authors: Afsharnejad, Bahareh (AUTHOR), Whitehorne Smith, Patrice (AUTHOR), Bölte, Sven (AUTHOR), Milbourn, Ben (AUTHOR), Girdler, Sonya (AUTHOR)
Source: Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders. May2026, Vol. 56 Issue 5, p1707-1724. 18p.
Subjects: Treatment of autism, High schools, Elementary schools, Evaluation of human services programs, CINAHL database, High school students, Group psychotherapy, Meta-analysis, Descriptive statistics, Systematic reviews, MEDLINE, School children, Asperger's syndrome, Data analysis software, Social skills education, Group process, Publication bias, Adolescence, Children
Abstract: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to identify and evaluate the quality of randomised controlled trials (RCTs), assessing the efficacy of Social Skills Group Programs (SSGPs) for primary and secondary school aged autistic children and adolescents exploring the influence of informant, setting characteristics and teaching strategies as moderating factors for social outcomes. A search of the electronic databases of Medline, ProQuest, CINAHL, Scopus, and Web of Sciences electronic databases was conducted for the period January 1, 2013 until December 31, 2023 for peer-reviewed RCT studies published in English, evaluating the efficacy of SSGPs for school-aged autistic children and adolescents (6–18 years). Included studies were assessed for methodological quality and efficacy using random effect meta-analysis. Informant analysis and moderator analyses were also conducted investigating the influence of informant, setting characteristics and teaching strategy utilised in the SSGPs on the participants social outcomes. Sixty-five studies were included in the systematic review with 49 studies included in the meta-analysis. Although most studies had strong or good methodological quality, a high possibility of publication bias was detected in the meta-analysis. After statistical adjustments for publication bias were made, findings revealed that SSGPs had no effect on the overall outcomes assessed by included studies on school-aged autistic children and adolescents. However, informant analysis revealed small effects reported by self-report, parent-proxy and researchers. Teaching strategies and setting characteristics were not significant moderators for the efficacy of SSGPs on the social outcomes of autistic children and adolescents. This review highlights the need for improvements in measurement frameworks for assessing social skills in autistic children and adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
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  Data: A Systematic Review of Implicit Versus Explicit Social Skills Group Programs in Different Settings for School-Aged Autistic Children and Adolescents.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Autism+%26+Developmental+Disorders%22">Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders</searchLink>. May2026, Vol. 56 Issue 5, p1707-1724. 18p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Treatment+of+autism%22">Treatment of autism</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22High+schools%22">High schools</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Elementary+schools%22">Elementary schools</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Evaluation+of+human+services+programs%22">Evaluation of human services programs</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22CINAHL+database%22">CINAHL database</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22High+school+students%22">High school students</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Group+psychotherapy%22">Group psychotherapy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Meta-analysis%22">Meta-analysis</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Descriptive+statistics%22">Descriptive statistics</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Systematic+reviews%22">Systematic reviews</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22MEDLINE%22">MEDLINE</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22School+children%22">School children</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Asperger's+syndrome%22">Asperger's syndrome</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Data+analysis+software%22">Data analysis software</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Social+skills+education%22">Social skills education</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Group+process%22">Group process</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Publication+bias%22">Publication bias</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Adolescence%22">Adolescence</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Children%22">Children</searchLink>
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  Data: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to identify and evaluate the quality of randomised controlled trials (RCTs), assessing the efficacy of Social Skills Group Programs (SSGPs) for primary and secondary school aged autistic children and adolescents exploring the influence of informant, setting characteristics and teaching strategies as moderating factors for social outcomes. A search of the electronic databases of Medline, ProQuest, CINAHL, Scopus, and Web of Sciences electronic databases was conducted for the period January 1, 2013 until December 31, 2023 for peer-reviewed RCT studies published in English, evaluating the efficacy of SSGPs for school-aged autistic children and adolescents (6–18 years). Included studies were assessed for methodological quality and efficacy using random effect meta-analysis. Informant analysis and moderator analyses were also conducted investigating the influence of informant, setting characteristics and teaching strategy utilised in the SSGPs on the participants social outcomes. Sixty-five studies were included in the systematic review with 49 studies included in the meta-analysis. Although most studies had strong or good methodological quality, a high possibility of publication bias was detected in the meta-analysis. After statistical adjustments for publication bias were made, findings revealed that SSGPs had no effect on the overall outcomes assessed by included studies on school-aged autistic children and adolescents. However, informant analysis revealed small effects reported by self-report, parent-proxy and researchers. Teaching strategies and setting characteristics were not significant moderators for the efficacy of SSGPs on the social outcomes of autistic children and adolescents. This review highlights the need for improvements in measurement frameworks for assessing social skills in autistic children and adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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        Value: 10.1007/s10803-024-06657-z
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 18
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      – SubjectFull: Treatment of autism
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: High schools
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Elementary schools
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      – SubjectFull: Evaluation of human services programs
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      – TitleFull: A Systematic Review of Implicit Versus Explicit Social Skills Group Programs in Different Settings for School-Aged Autistic Children and Adolescents.
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              Text: May2026
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