The perspective of families on the effectiveness of the Play Time/Social Time program for the development of social competence in children with IDD

The quality of a child's interaction with their peers is the best indicator of social competence and is determined by the use of effective and adequate social strategies. However, children with intellectual development disorder (IDD) show significant difficulties in acquiring social competence and, therefore, being fully accepted and included. The aim of this study is to present families' evaluations of the use of the Play Time/Social Time program for the promotion of effective social strategies both at home and at school. A total of nine families participated, with children between 3 and 5 years old with IDD enrolled in ordinary kindergartens in three different autonomous communities. The study is based on focus groups, a questionnaire to evaluate the social validity of the program, and field diaries kept by the families themselves. The results are analyzed and discussed in terms of both the program's contributions to the child's social competence and parenting skills, as well as proposals for improvement.