134 Jill Locke and Colleen Harker
2000; Koegel, Werner, Vismara and Koegel, 2005; Bauminger et al., 2008; Harper,
Symon and Frea, 2008; Licciardello, Harchik, and Luiselli, 2008). Often, peer mod-
els are given homework assignments or “missions” to practice learned skills with
students with ASD (Kasari et al., 2012; Reichow and Volkmar, 2010).
The majority of research investigating social interventions for individuals with
ASD has focused on preschool and elementary school–aged children (Reichow and
Volkmar, 2010). There is a dearth of research about social skills interventions, par-
ticularly peer-mediated interventions, for students with ASD in secondary school
(Reichow and Volkmar, 2010). To date, peer-mediated intervention strategies for
students with ASD in middle and high school have mirrored those of elementary
school, though the content and context have differed (Carter and Hughes, 2005).
This continues to be an area that warrants further research.
Peer-mediated intervention outcomes
Students with ASD are often on the periphery of the social structure within
their classroom (Chamberlain, Kasari and Rotheram-Fuller, 2007; Kasari, Locke,
Gulsrud and Rotheram-Fuller, 2011; Locke, Kasari, Rotheram-Fuller, Kretzmann
and Jacobs, 2013). Peer-mediated interventions have been shown to improve the
social network centrality (i.e., social connections, peer acceptance, and classroom
inclusion) of students with ASD (Kasari et al., 2012). Other studies also have shown
promise in the use of typically developing peer models in supporting children
and adolescents with ASD in the classroom. Specifically, peer-mediated interven-
tions including peer modeling, networking, tutoring, and mentoring have led to
improvements in non-verbal social skills (e.g., eye contact, joint attention), play skills
(e.g., turn-taking), and reciprocal social-communication skills (e.g., conversations,
initiations, responses) as well as greater social interaction and increased friendships
for children and adolescents with ASD (Strain and Kohler, 1995; Roeyers, 1996;
Kamps et al., 1997; Laushey and Heflin, 2000; Carter and Kennedy, 2006; Bass and
Mulick, 2007; Jung, Sainato and Davis, 2008; Owen-DeSchryver, Carr, Cale and
Blakeley-Smith, 2008; Kasari et al., 2012). Furthermore, peer-mediated interven-
tions may complement traditional school-based social skills interventions and lead
to greater skills generalization for students with ASD (Schmidt and Stichter, 2012).
Selection of peer models
In elementary school, teachers frequently are responsible for selecting appropriate
peer models for children with ASD. In doing so they often must consider logistical
and social factors. Logistical factors might include a student’s school attendance
and academic performance to ensure that he or she will be present for training and
intervention activities and capable of completing any missed schoolwork (Campbell
and Marino, 2009; Kamps et al., 2014; Owen-DeSchryver et al., 2008). Teachers also
must consider social factors in selecting peer models. These selection criteria vary
and are typically based on teachers’ perceptions of who may be a good peer model.