The Effect of Peer Mediated Social Competency Training on the Type and Frequency of Social Contacts with Students with Deaf-Blindness

We first taught 3 primary age peers social interaction skills in order to enhance their ability to interact with 3 students with deaf-blindness. Following training of the primary peers, they selected friends (secondary peers), 2 in two cases and 1 in the other, to whom they would then teach those same skills. Results indicated that after training secondary peers used a wider variety of socially interactive behaviors, with the greatest increases in the categories of affiliation, affirmation, requests, offers, and seeking attention. Data with regard to the daily contacts of peers indicated that: 4 secondary peers increased the frequency of their social contacts with students with deaf-blindness, with the fifth remaining unchanged; and, 3 secondary peers increased the duration of their social contacts with students with deaf-blindness, with 2 remaining unchanged. Interviews with secondary peers indicated more equality in relationships, greater depth of understanding of the students with deaf-blindness, and an identification of the students with deaf-blindness as friends. Results are discussed with respect to friendship networks and natural supports, building frameworks for friendships, and implications for future research on social relationships and social support.