A comparison of the effectiveness of video modelling and point-of-view video modelling on the social skills of primary school children with autism

Abstract

The number of children diagnosed with autism continues to grow at a startling rate. Meeting the needs of individuals with autism is not just a concern for parents, healthcare professionals, and educators. It is equally a concern for society at large. Individuals with autism face difficulties with their social skills. In dealing with such difficulties, evidence-based interventions, such as video modelling, have allowed researchers to make some progress in terms of changing the trajectory of the deficit of social skills in children with autism. Further, video modelling can be considered a cost-effective and time efficient form of intervention which can readily be used in the home, classroom and community. The aim of this study was to compare video modelling and point-of-view video modelling in order to see which approach was more effective on the social skills of primary children with autism in the UK, specifically concerning their verbal and action imitation skills. In the present study, a mixed-methods approach was used involving a single-subject, multiple-baseline design across three groups of participants and three treatment conditions—video modelling from the third-person perspective, point-of-view video modelling from the first-person perspective and a control group. The research design included baseline, intervention and follow-up probes using three play sets. All sessions were videotaped and transcribed for data analysis. Data from descriptive narrative records was analysed using event recording. Results suggest that point-of-view video modelling was more effective than video modelling in increasing the verbal and action imitation skills for two out of the three groups of participants in this study. However, this study has its own limitations given the small sampling size and similar other factors. In light of this, the results will be discussed in relation to existing research. Finally, recommendations for future research and practice, policy and theory will be suggested.