Social competence deficits are characteristic of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), given that one criterion specified in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act include the inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers. Social skills can be defined as specific behaviors that an individual performs competently on a social task, whereas social competence is an evaluative term based on judgments of significant others (e.g., teachers, parents, peers) regarding the appropriateness of behavioral performances. This article discusses the social skills assessment process within the context of a three-stage problem-solving model of problem identification, problem analysis, and treatment evaluation. Specific social skills assessment strategies are described and linked to a classification system of social skills deficits. This classification was viewed as important in matching specific social skills deficits to intervention strategies.
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