Social skills assessment
A social skills assessment identifies which social behaviors a person performs well and which need teaching, such as greeting, turn-taking, sharing and conversation.
Social skills include initiating and responding to interactions, joint attention, sharing, taking turns, waiting, joining play, holding a conversation, reading others' cues, and handling conflict. A social skills assessment looks at which of these the person does, how often, with whom and in which settings, and which are missing or weak.
Information can come from several sources: direct observation in natural settings such as recess or a group activity, structured tasks or role-plays that set up social opportunities, checklists, and rating scales completed by caregivers or teachers. Direct observation shows what actually happens, while rating scales add information about settings the team does not see. Results guide the supervisor's social skills goals.
RBTs often help by setting up role-play scenarios, acting as a conversation partner or peer model, arranging opportunities during natural routines, and recording data on specific social behaviors. Data should describe observable behavior, such as "responded to a peer's greeting within 5 seconds", rather than general impressions like "was friendly". The RBT records what happens without adding extra prompts unless the procedure calls for them.
Example and non-example
| Example | Following the supervisor's protocol, an RBT sets up a board game with a peer and records how many times the client waits for their turn and comments on the peer's play. |
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| Non-example | Recording whether a client can tie their shoes independently is part of a self-care skill assessment, not a social skills assessment. |
Don't confuse it with
| Developmental assessment | A social skills assessment focuses on social behavior; a developmental assessment covers many areas and compares them with age norms. |
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| Curriculum-based assessment | A social skills assessment focuses on social behavior; a curriculum-based assessment can cover any area of a teaching curriculum. |
Test yourself
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Question 1A supervisor asks an RBT to watch a 9-year-old during recess and record how often the child starts conversations, joins games and takes turns with peers. Which kind of assessment is the RBT helping with?
Show answer
B: A social skills assessment. Recording how a client starts interactions, joins activities and takes turns with peers is direct observation for a social skills assessment.
- A: A functional analysis arranges test conditions to find what maintains problem behavior.
- C: A free operant preference assessment records which items a client chooses to engage with.
- D: A scatterplot records when a target behavior occurs across times of day to find time patterns.
Task B.2 · 40-hour curriculum section D
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Question 2For a social skills assessment, the supervisor asks the RBT to play the role of a peer who asks the client to share a toy. How should the RBT carry out the role-play?
Show answer
C: Follow the script so each client response can be scored fairly. Role-play scenarios in an assessment are set up to present the same social situation in a planned way. Following the script lets the supervisor compare the client's responses with the scoring criteria.
- A: Changing the script without direction means the situations are no longer the ones being assessed.
- B: Hints are prompts and would make the client look more skilled than they are.
- D: A description from memory is not the direct observation the supervisor asked for.
Task B.2 · 40-hour curriculum section D
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Question 3Which skill would most likely be measured in a social skills assessment?
Show answer
C: Responding when a peer says hello. Social skills involve interacting with other people, such as greeting, responding, sharing and taking turns.
- A: Doing a puzzle alone is a play or fine motor skill, not an interaction with others.
- B: Matching pictures is a visual discrimination skill.
- D: Writing a name is an academic or fine motor skill.
Task B.2 · 40-hour curriculum section D
Answer every question to see your score.
On the RBT exam
This term belongs to task B.2 Skill assessments in content area B, Behavior Assessment, which is 8 of the 75 scored questions.