ABSTRACT
This chapter considers language as part of a constellation of behaviours that comprise social skill. Chronic social isolation appears to be the defining characteristic of the long-term psychosocial consequences of traumatic brain injury (TBI). The chapter outlines some factors that need to be considered when planning an assessment of social skills with TBI patients, and a number of key issues that need to be resolved before further advances are made in the training of social skills in TBI patients. The Social Avoidance and Distress Scale assess an individual's self-reported tendency to avoid social interactions, and to feel anxious while in them. Whereas the Communication Skills Test is designed solely for analysing social skill during problem-solving dyadic interactions, the Behaviourally Referenced Rating System of Intermediate Social Skills (BRISS) can be used to assess social skill in a wide variety of situations. Social skills training can be undertaken as either an individual or a group treatment.
