Using Covert Audio Coaching to Teach “Small Talk” to a College Student with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Abstract

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) frequently have challenges engaging in social and communication skills due to lack of availability and safe opportunities to practice these skills. The ability to successfully engage in “small talk,” or simple social conversational exchanges, can be beneficial in educational, professional, and social environments. Covert audio coaching (CAC) has been used to teach skills to individuals with IDD, but only a few studies have investigated CAC to teach social skills. In this study, a withdrawal design was used to examine the impact of CAC to teach a young woman with IDD to engage in small talk with a confederate on a university campus. Results demonstrated a functional relation between CAC and the student’s on-topic small talk conversational exchanges. Implications and future research are discussed.

Keywords

• developmental disabilities
• intellectual disability
• covert audio coaching
• small talk
• social skills