BIO

My name is Devon Mclean and I am excited to have had the opportunity to participate in UROP this past school year and fulfill my research interests and goals. I am from Boca Raton, Florida and am currently completing my sophomore year at Florida State. The UROP program allowed me to join a team of amazing research mentors and students who helped me to grow academically and gain new skills and knowledge that I can confidently say I will carry with me into my future.

Assessing Social Validity of Educational Interventions for Children with Autism

Abstract

Autism affects an estimated one in thirty-six children in the US. This highlights the importance of conducting research pertaining to effective instrumental practices with the intention of bringing an increased focus to this subject field. The project at hand conducts a scoping review of the social validity relevant to ASD intervention studies. As such, the research project will undergo four stages of a scoping review, including identification, screening, eligibility, and a quantitative synthesis. Many evidence-based instructional strategies have been proven helpful, but ultimately, these interventions are only useful if consumers are willing to use them and are socially valid. Consumers can include educators, caregivers, and the children themselves. The reason for social validity assessments is to anticipate if an intervention is going to be rejected before it is used. This study aims to determine what proportion of studies include social validity assessments, what methods researchers use to assess social validity, and whose perspectives are represented in the social validity assessments. The results of this research project are currently ongoing as we conduct the data extraction process.

Keywords: Social Validity, ASD, Autism interventions