Familiarity breeds support: Speech-language pathologists’ perceptions of bullying of students with autism spectrum disorders Gordon W. Blood a, *, Ingrid M. Blood a , Amy D. Coniglio a , Erinn H. Finke a , Michael P. Boyle b a The Pennsylvania State University, United States b Oklahoma State University, United States 1. Introduction Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are characterized by social impairment, communication difficulties, and repetitive and stereotyped behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Children with ASD have symptoms that vary from mild to severe and often stand out in school environments due to their unique and uncommon reactions and behaviors in social settings. Children with ASD are a very heterogeneous group (Tager-Flusberg & Joseph, 2003). According to Cappadocia, Weiss, & Pepler (2012), bullying experiences are very common among children with ASD and victimization rates are twice as high as those found in the general population. Research reveals self-reported prevalence rates as high as 75% (Little, 2001) Journal of Communication Disorders 46 (2013) 169–180 A R T I C L E I N F O Article history: Received 7 August 2012 Received in revised form 19 December 2012 Accepted 18 January 2013 Available online 31 January 2013 Keywords: Autism spectrum disorders Bullying Speech-language pathologists Perceptions Intervention A B S T R A C T Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are primary targets for bullies and victimization. Research shows school personnel may be uneducated about bullying and ways to intervene. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in schools often work with children with ASD and may have victims of bullying on their caseloads. These victims may feel most comfortable turning to SLPs for help during one-to-one treatment sessions to discuss these types of experiences. A nationwide survey mailed to 1000 school-based SLPs, using a vignette design technique, determined perceptions about intervention for bullying and use of specific strategies. Results revealed a majority of the SLPs (89%) responses were in ‘‘likely’’ or ‘‘very likely’’ to intervene categories for all types of bullying (physical, verbal, relational and cyber), regardless of whether the episode was observed or not. A factor analysis was conducted on a 14 item strategy scale for dealing with bullying for children with ASD. Three factors emerged, labeled ‘‘Report/Consult’’, ‘‘Educate the Victim’’, and Reassure the Victim’’. SLPs providing no services to children with ASD on their caseloads demonstrated significantly lower mean scores for the likelihood of intervention and using select strategies. SLPs may play an important role in reducing and/or eliminating bullying episodes in children with ASD. Learning outcomes: Readers will be able to (a) explain four different types of bullying, (b) describe the important role of school personnel in reducing and eliminating bullying, (c) describe the perceptions and strategies selected by SLPs to deal with bullying episodes for students with ASD, and (d) outline the potential role of SLPs in assisting students with ASD who are victimized. ß 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author at: Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, 308 Ford Building, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, United States. Tel.: +1 814 865-3177; fax: +1 814 863-3759. E-mail address: f2x@psu.edu (G.W. Blood). Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Journal of Communication Disorders 0021-9924/$ – see front matter ß 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcomdis.2013.01.002