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Social Skills Rating Scale (SSRS)
Availability
Please visit this website for more information about the instrument: Social Skills Rating System
Classification
Supplemental: Neuromuscular Diseases (NMD)
Short Description of Instrument
The Social Skills Rating System (SSRS) is a broad multi-rater assessment tool that measures a students' social behaviors that can affect teacher-student relations, peer acceptance and academic performance. (Gresham, 2001) While the SSRS focuses on a comprehensive assessment of social skills, it also measures problem behaviors that can interfere with the acquisition and/or performance of socially skilled behaviors and examine academic competence since poor academic performance and social behavior problems can frequently occur together. (Gresham, 2001)
 
There are three separate SSRS forms for teachers, parents, and students (grades 3-12): Preschool (ages 3-5 years), Elementary (grades K-6), and Secondary (grades 7-12). The teacher, parent, and student rating forms sample three domains: social skills, problem behaviors, and academic competence.
Comments/Special Instructions
The SSRS assesses five social skills domains (CARES): Cooperation, Assertion, Responsibility (Parent Form only), Empathy (Student Form only), and Self-Control. These domains are captured by the acronym CARES. The SSRS also assesses three problem behavior domains: Externalizing Problems, Internalizing Problems, and Hyperactivity Problems. (Gresham & Elliot, 1990; Gresham, 2001)
 
Social Skill Domains
    • Cooperation: Behaviors facilitating academic performance and success
    • Assertion: Behaviors involving initiation of social interactions or expression of opinions
    • Responsibility: Behaviors related to following rules in home and community settings
    • Empathy: Behaviors that express understanding of another person's feelings
    • Self-Control: Behaviors that involve inhibition of impulses or negative behavior 
Problem Behaviors
    • Externalizing: Behaviors representing under-controlled or acting-out behavior pattern
    • Internalizing: Behaviors representing overcontrolled or inhibited behavior pattern
    • Hyperactivity: Behaviors representing inattention, impulsivity, and overactivity
Scoring and Psychometric Properties
Scoring: Items on the SSRS are rated on a 3-point scale ("0--Never," "1--Sometimes," "2--Very Often") based on the rater's perceived frequency of a certain behavior. Gresham & Elliot, 1990; Gresham, 2001) Standard scores (M=100, SD=15) and percentile ranks are calculated from raw scale scores.
 
All SSRS forms, except the Student Elementary form utilize a 3-point Importance rating scale for the Social Skills Scale. Behaviors are rated as 0 if they are perceived to be "Not Important," 1 if they are perceived to be "Important," and 2 if they are perceived to be "Critical." (Gresham, 2001)
 
Psychometric Properties:
Grades 3-12 norms standardized on a national sample of 4170 children and adolescents with equal number of boys and girls in the sample.  
Preschool norms (ages 3-5 years) standardized on a smaller tryout sample of 200 children.
 
Total Social Skills Scales, internal consistency estimates range from .83 (Student Elementary/Secondary) to .94 (Teacher Preschool/Elementary), with subscale coefficient alphas ranging from .51 to .92 (Mdn = .72). Total Problem Behavior Scale coefficient alphas range from .73 (Parent/Preschool) to .88 (Teacher/Elementary), with subscale alphas ranging from .57 to .89 (Mdn = .73). Academic Competence Scale coefficient alphas were .95 ( Elementary and Secondary teacher forms). Four-week test-retest reliabilities for the Total Social Skills Scale range from .68 (Student Form) to .87 (Parent Form). Total Problem Behavior Scale social skill subscale stability estimates range from .52 to .88 (Mdn = .70) and stability estimates for the range from .65 (Parent Form) to .84 (Teacher Form), with subscale stability estimates ranging from .48 to .84 (Mdn = .66). The stability estimate for the Academic Competence Scale was .93. Community-University Partnership for the Study of Children, Youth, and Families, 2011; Gresham, 2001)
Rationale/Justification
Strengths: The SSRS is easy to administer, moderately easy to score.
 
Weaknesses: Scores must be interpreted by professionals with formal graduate level training.
References
Key References:
Gresham FM‚ Elliot SN, Black F. (1987). Teacher-rated social skills of mainstreamed mildly retarded and no handicapped children. School Psychol Rev. 1987;17:78-88.
 
Elliott S, Gresham F, Freeman T, McCloskey G. (1988). Teacher and observer ratings of children's social skills: Validation of the Social Skills Rating Scale. J Psychoeduc Assess. 1988;6:152-161.
 
Gresham FM & Elliott SN. (1990) Social skills rating system. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service
 
Additional References:
Community-University Partnership for the Study of Children, Youth, and Families (2011). Review of the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS). Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Accessed from:
 
Gresham F. Assessment of Social Skills in Children and Adolescents. In: Handbook of Psychoeducational Assessment Ability, Achievement, and Behavior in Children Educational Psychology. 2001, pp.325-55.
 
PsychCorp/Pearson/Pearson Education, Inc. Social Skills Rating System (SSRS). Retrieved: 2018 July 18. Accessed from: https://www.pearsonclinical.com/education/products/100000115/social-skills-rating-system-ssrs.html
 
Rutter, M., Bailey, A.,& Lord, C. (2003). SCQ: Social Communication Questionnaire. Western Psychological Services: Los Angeles, CA.
 
Document last updated October 2024