This study examined the effects of social skills training and peer involvement on the peer acceptance of disliked preadolescents. 56 fifth- and sixth-grade children were identified as unaccepted by their peers and deficient in conversational skills. These children were then randomly assigned to 1 of 4 treatment conditions: (1) conversational skills training (individual coaching), (2) peer involvement under superordinate goals (group experience), (3) conversational skills training combined with peer involvement (group experience with coaching), and (4) a no-treatment control. Differential treatment effects were observed at both a posttreatment and follow-up assessment. As predicted, conversational skills training promoted skill acquisition and increased skillful social interaction. Peer involvement increased peer acceptance and children's self-perceptions of their social efficacy. The results were interpreted in terms of a developmentally based multidimensional model of social competence.
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