Social Skills
By B. Mubanga
objectives
• To define social skills
• Discuss Factors that may lead to problems
with socially accepted behavior
• To explain Importance of social skills
• To discuss Problems that need intervention
• To discuss Intervention
Introduction
• Social skills is constituted when there
is manifestation of deviant behavior
in the line of social skills e.g.
maintaining personal hygiene
Definition
• Social skills is any interpersonal
interaction that is used in everyday
life. It involves an approach to
activities of daily living by Nancy
Roppers model.
• A social person uses interpersonal
skills according to culture and norms.
Factors that may lead to problems with
socially accepted behavior
• Individuals hearing intrusive voices or feeling
controlled by other external forces
• An individual with history of social failure,
rejection and criticism may minimize
interactions with people
• The other reason would be simply to avoid
anxiety during interactions
Importance of social skills
• There are many causes of Schizophrenia
and patients undergo a lot of social and
occupational impairment because of the
damage to the brain. Therefore different
interventions should be employed to
help such clients so that they are
equipped with different skills to avoid
being dependant to their families.
• Why Is Social Skills Training Important?
• Social skills’ training is important for the
following reasons:
• People with abnormal behaviours; do not
interact with others because their social skills
are poor.
• Other people may avoid people with mental
disorders because of their self absorption,
pessimism or elation.
Importance cont.
• When someone has had mental illness for a
long time, they tend to loose their social skills.
• Clients with mental illness loose their social
skills due to chronic or long illnesses or
admissions. As nurses we have to train them
so that they can regain the lost social skills, to
avoid social isolation and stigmatization
Support
• They need support from their family
members as well as support from health
workers to help lead a normal life.
• Examples of social skills are
communication, maintaining hygiene.
• Social skills are focused on
maintaining competent social skills
which are culturally appropriate.
• It often includes reinforcement on
interpersonal interactions
Problems that need intervention
• Interventions are aimed at
correcting deficits in daily living skills
i.e. poor personal hygiene, problems
with using the home items, dealing
with finances- etc.
Interventions
• Many of these interventions involve
simple advice, coaching and modeling.
• Visits to the cinema, pubs, park, football
match, museum or places of interest
identified by the patient are all useful in
exercising social skills, restoring
confidence and building initiative.
Behaviorist theory
• The behaviorists believe that all social
behaviors are learned and can be
relearned.
Skills to use
• Attention in form of support
• Praise given to motivate( one feels
special)
• Approval to gain confidence
• Smile to transmit warmth (physical
contact with the patient shows that you
care)
Skills cont,
• Role play- to learn through observing others.
E.g. the therapist demonstrates how to nod
the head up and down, eye contact etc then
feed back until therapist is satisfied with the
performance.
Skills cont.
• Also assertiveness skills, Learn how to
maintain eye contact – techniques used are
modeling,
• role play
• video feed back
• group work – most successful way of
stimulating clients to rekindle their interests.
• END
