Designing of Social Skills Training Program for the mothers of Deaf Children: An assessment of its effects on Behavior Problems of Cochlear Implanted Deaf Adolescent

Hearing impaired children having undergone cochlear implant, despite of progress in communication skills, do not have satisfactory relationships with their peers. The main purpose of this study was to design a family-oriented personal-social skills training program and to examine its effect of it’s on behavior problems of cochlear implanted individuals. In this experimental study, 16 families that have cochlear implanted adolescent were selected based on entrance criteria, including mothers and their two-year old child with cochlear implanted ranging from 12 to 19 years old, from 328 families. Consequently, they were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups. The behavioral part of Social Skills Rating Scale for measurement of behavioral problems was used. The designed program includes the onset of communication, finding friend, etiquette, use of body language in interaction, affection and emotion management, conflict and it’s solving, self-assertiveness, cooperation, responsibility, citizen and decision making. Multivariate covariance was employed in order to analyze the data. The results showed that family-oriented social skills training program reduces internalizing (F=10/33, P<0/01), externalizing (F=30/83, P<0/01), hyperactivity (F=19/41, P<0/01) and general behavior problems (F=46/14, P<0/01). The study revealed that family-oriented social skills training program is effective in decreasing the behavioral problems of cochlear implanted adolescent which can be employed to decrease behavior problems and improve social adjustment, as these skills can be an integral part of rehabilitation program.