The Effects of Social and Isolate Toys on the Social Interaction of Preschool Children with Disabilities

Research on the use of toys and materials as a setting event for social interaction between children with disabilities and peers has been encouraging. Studies to date have been methodologically problematic, with interpretation being complicated by artificial settings as well as group size and composition that were not consistent with typical preschools. This study investigated the effect of the availability of social and isolate toys during free play in typical inclusive community preschools. A small n alternating treatment design was used to compare effectiveness of social and isolate toys on the social interaction of children with disabilities. Despite sound procedural integrity, only modest intervention effects were found for 2 of the 6 target children, who demonstrated consistently more social interaction in the social toy condition. These findings raise questions as to the extent to which findings in more artificial settings translate into inclusive community preschools.