Social Thinking® is a cognitive-behavioral curriculum and framework developed for individuals with social learning challenges to improve their social cognition – the thinking that underpins social skills. It focuses on teaching concepts like perspective-taking , understanding unspoken social rules, and adapting one’s behavior based on the social context. The curriculum includes strategies and vocabulary (e.g., “expected vs. unexpected behaviors,” “thinking with your eyes,” “the Group Plan”) that break down complex social processes into teachable parts. Social Thinking approaches are often delivered in group therapy or classroom settings, where clinicians use worksheets, role-playing, and guided discussions to help individuals become more aware of how others perceive their actions and how to navigate social interactions more successfully.
Crooke, Pamela J., Ryan Hendrix, and Janine Y. Rachman. 2008. “Brief Report: Measuring the Effectiveness of Teaching Social Thinking to Children with Asperger Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism.” Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders 38 (3): 581–591. Link
Leaf, Justin B., et al. 2016. “Social Thinking®: Science, Pseudoscience, or Antiscience?” Behavior Analysis in Practice 9 (4). Link
