Why Occupational Therapy By Itself Isn’t Enough to Build Social Skills
Social development is a crucial part of childhood. A lot of children that aren’t typically developing (and even many children who are typically developing) struggle with social cues and understanding different social interactions. Unfortunately, this is something that is difficult to address in one-on-one therapy.
Occupational therapy is important, and therapy itself should not be neglected. However, if the principles aren’t put into practice outside of therapy, improvement in behavior and social growth can be limited. It is very important for children to be involved in peer groups to build social and behavioral skills and to apply the skills learned during therapy.
What is learned through peer interactions?
Peer interactions are crucial for all children, both neurotypical and developmentally delayed. Children learn through interactions and by watching others. They learn things such as social cues and problem-solving skills, and they receive emotional support from other children.
They learn important personal and interpersonal skills such as self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and decision-making. Children will learn from watching adults, but adults do not provide all the support necessary, so the most effective way they learn is through watching other people their age.
Peer interactions also serve as positive motivation. For example, in one case study, an occupational therapist (OT) working with a boy who was learning to use a spoon witnessed how watching peers encouraged him to use the spoon.1 The boy had all the motor skills and was capable of feeding himself, but was used to other adults feeding him, so when he was asked to feed himself, he would throw a fit. However, when two girls his age showed up and ate with him. When he saw the girls eating, he too began using his spoon. This is just one example of the power of peer interactions.
How to get your child involved?
Play groups or social skills camps are great for all children to be a part of. Summer camp programs for the summer help continue peer interactions when school is out of session. For those children with social or behavioral challenges, look for programs geared specifically towards teaching social skills. A great way to do this is through special education programs or private clinics (EJ offers many summer programs including a play group, social skills group, and emotional regulation group).
Co-occupation programs in the schools are a great way to nurture interactions between those children with social and communication challenges and typically developing children. Typically developing children prefer to interact with typically developing children, and those typically developing children that do interact with those that have social or behavioral issues may not understand ASD behaviors or approach ASD children correctly in order to nurture authentic relationships. Through co-occupation programs, typically developing students learn how to interact with developmentally delayed children, which creates an environment of inclusivity within the schools. This also greatly helps children with social or behavioral challenges, as it allows them to get the peer interactions they need to learn social skills in a controlled setting.
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Sundar, Savitha. “Effecting Change in School-Based Practice: Fostering Social Inclusion in a Co-occupation Program,” OT Practice. 26, no. 5 (2021): 1-14, https://www.aota.org/publications/ot-practice/ot-practice-issues/2021/effecting-change-in-school-practice
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Pepler, D and K Bierman, “With a Little Help From My Friends-The Importance of Peer Relationships for Social and Emotional Development,” Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 1 November 2018, https://www.rwjf.org/en/library/research/2018/11/with-a-little-help-from-my-friends--the-importance-of-peer-relationships-for-social-emotional-development.html.
Sundar, Savitha. “Effecting Change in School-Based Practice: Fostering Social Inclusion in a Co-occupation Program,” OT Practice. 26, no. 5 (2021): 1-14, https://www.aota.org/publications/ot-practice/ot-practice-issues/2021/effecting-change-in-school-practice.