Brief Report: Theatre as Therapy for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

The pilot investigation evaluated a theatrical intervention program, Social Emotional NeuroScience Endocrinology (SENSE) Theatre, designed to improve socioemotional functioning and reduce stress in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Eight children with ASD were paired with typically developing peers that served as expert models. Neuropsychological, biological (cortisol and oxytocin), and behavioral measures were assessed in a pretest–posttest design. The intervention was embedded in a full musical theatrical production. Participants showed some improvement in face identification and theory of mind skills. The intervention shows potential promise in improving the socioemotional functioning in children with ASD through the utilization of peers, video and behavioral modeling, and a community-based theatrical setting

Why Is Video Modeling Not Used In Special Needs Classrooms?

A chasm exists between scientific research and applied interventions in special needs classrooms. An example of this chasm is the lack of use of video modeling interventions whose efficacy has been shown in numerous case studies. We surveyed 44 special needs educators across several schools and found that a mere 25% are familiar with using video modeling as an intervention and of those only 2 teachers used it. In contrast, 42.5% of the responders use apps targeting special needs behaviors in their classrooms. The survey results indicate that human factors, such as ease of use, are the main reason for using the apps currently utilized by those teachers. This study informed of the need for applying human factor principles when designing systems implementing interventions in special needs classrooms