School Psychology Review Volume 24, No. 4, 1995, pp. C,-1S-c>71 SOCIAL SKILLS ASSESSMENT: A COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF SIX PUBLISHED RATING SCALES Michelle K. Demaray, Stacey L. Ruffalo, John Carlson, R. T. Busse, Amy E. Olson, Susan M. McManus, and Amy Leventhal University of Wisconsin-Madison Abstract: A comparative and integrative review was conducted of six published rat- ing scales commonly used to assess the social skills of preschool and school-aged children. Four norm-referenced instruments are reviewed: School Social Behavior Scales (SSBS; Merrell, 1993), Social SkiUs Rating System (SSRS; Gresham & Elliott, 1990), Waksman Social SkillsRating Scale (WSSRS; Waksman, 1985), and Walker-MC- Connell Scale of Social Competence and School Adjustment (WMS; Walker & Mc- Connell, 1988). The School Social Skills Rating Scale (S3; Brown, Black, & Downs, 1984) and Social Behavior Assessment Inventory (SBAI; Stephens & Arnold, 1992) are included as criterion-referenced rating scales. Content and use, standardization sample and norms, scores and interpretation, and psychometric properties were re- viewed. We concluded that the most comprehensive instrument is the SSRS because of its multi-source approach and intervention linkage. The SSBS and the WMS are use- ful tools for a more limited school scope. The remaining norm-referenced scale, WSSRS, is not recommended. Following initial screening, the S3 and SBAI are useful for a more specific examination of particular behaviors to target for change. The assessment of social skills is an im- portant issue in school settings. Research has indicated that children who persistently exhibit social skills deficits often experi- ence short- and long-term negative conse- quences (Elliott, Sheridan, & Gresham, 1989). For example, peer relationship diffi- culties have been found to remain stable over time (Coie & Dodge, 1983), and to be predictive of adult psychopathology (Parker & Asher, 1987). Further, social skills deficits have been related to poor academic adjustment for children with (McKinney & Speece, 1983) and without disabilities (Hoge & Lute, 1979), and poor peer accep- tance of students with disabilities (Gre- sham, 1988; Hazel & Schumaker, 1988; Stumme, Gresham, & Scott, 1982). Recognition of the importance of as- sessing social skills has given rise to a num- ber of rating scales specifically focused on children’s and adolescents’ social behav- iors. Social skills rating scales have been de- veloped for use by parents, teachers, and other adults associated with the individual being rated. These measures can range in composition from scales with two or more subscales assessing different areas of a con- struct, to single scales measuring narrowly defined constructs. Rating scales can pro- vide valuable information regarding chil- dren’s social skills; however, best practices assessment calls for gathering information from multiple sources, settings, and meth- ods. Elliott and colleagues (1989) provided a useful heuristic for the assessment of so- cial skills that includes: (a) teacher, parent, and student ratings; (b) teacher, parent, and student interviews; (c) observations; (d) be- havioral role-plays; and (e) sociometrics. Social behavior rating scales can facili- tate a variety of assessment decisions (Wil- son & Bullock, 1989) and can be used (a) as part of the screening, referral, and identifi- cation process; (b) to compare behaviors across settings; (c) to monitor behavior over time; and (d) in research. An important advantage of rating scales over other as- sessment methods is the ability to obtain judgments about a variety of traits or be- haviors from many sources in a time effi- cient manner. Elliott, Busse, and Gresham (1993) suggested some additional advan- tages of rating scales. For example, rating scales can be used to demonstrate a prompt reaction to a teacher or parent referral, Address all correspondence concerning this manuscript to Michelle K. Danaray, The University of Wisconsin-Madison, Educational Sciences Building, 1025 W. Johnson St., Madison, WI 53’706. 648