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Abstract
Five case studies were conducted in a coordinated manner to assess the effects of self-instructional training on the performance of pervasively-disordered adults in a social skills training group. Each subject received (1) social skills treatment, (2) self-instructional treatment focused on cognitive functioning, and (3) non-specific control treatment. The studies were conducted in a naturalistic aftercare setting. Together, the five cases reflected both the heterogeneity of schizophrenic individuals residing in aftercare settings and the variability of adjustment of these individuals.
Performance in social skills training was measured by a battery of instruments including observer assessments of behavior, therapist ratings of performance and a quiz to assess the assimilation and retention of material presented in the group.
Results indicated that four of the five subjects individually benefited from the cognitive intervention. Group-wise analysis of the case data revealed that the cognitive intervention made a unique and specific contribution to group performance as measured by information assimilated and retained. Other measures of performance showed more equivocal results.
The results support the hypothesis that cognitive interventions contribute to substantive improvement in the response of pervasively-disordered adults to social skills training conducted in a naturalistic treatment setting. The study also demonstrates the usefulness of outcome methodologies which utilize time-series data with individual subjects in a small group treatment format.
