Effects of Social Stories on the Behaviors of Typically Developing Preschoolers

Abstract

Challenging behaviors are not exclusive to children with disabilities; they can also affect typically developing children. This study used a multiple baseline design across participants to look at how a social story intervention affected the challenging behaviors (e.g., temper tantrums, hitting, yelling) of three typically developing preschoolers. Overall, results showed that the social stories decreased challenging behaviors from baseline to intervention. Children also experienced an increase in prosocial behaviors and social validity indicated that teachers believed the social story was effective in teaching social skills. This study added to the existing literature on social stories by researching their effect on a population that had not yet been studied.  These findings suggest that social stories can be effective interventions for typically developing preschoolers who demonstrate challenging behaviors.