There is increasing interest in the role of peers in facilitating the social interaction of pupils with ASD through Peer-mediated Interventions (PMI). A systematic literature review was conducted to provide an overview of methods used to evaluate the impact of PMI and provide examples of innovative practice. Four databases were searched. Following application of inclusion and exclusion criteria and coding of studies, 10 were included in the final review. The review found that measuring the outcome of PMI at the level of target pupils has been a focus, with less attention given to exploring experiences of participants; impact on peers and implementation of PMI within an educational context. An innovative PMI was implemented within a mainstream primary school to promote the social inclusion of a Year 3 male pupil with ASD, with his class and five peers. Key elements of the PMI included development of the programme with school staff, whole class awareness raising and a small group peer network. The intervention was evaluated through structured playground observations of pupil-peer interaction, interviews with the target pupil and school staff and a peer focus group. Findings indicated that this small-scale PMI had a positive impact at the level of the target pupil and peers. Key factors facilitating the implementation of this intervention within a school context were also identified. A structured dissemination strategy that involved consultation activities with key stakeholders explored the refinement of an ecologically valid and feasible model for delivery in mainstream schools. Future considerations in developing the intervention framework include; refining elements of the programme based on feedback from key stakeholders and trialling the delivery of the intervention by school staff trained in the programme. Implications for Educational Psychologists (EPs) in the development and delivery of the intervention are discussed.

Children with autism, by diagnostic criteria, experience a lack of age appropriate play and social skills (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). This study evaluated three typically developing peer's ability to implement Pivotal Response Training strategies during recess with a child with autism in their third grade class. A concurrent multiple probe baseline across peers design was used to assess peers ability to implement Pivotal Response Training strategies with the target child and the effects of intervention on the play and communication behavior of the target child. Generalization measures were taken in an untrained environment. Measures of social validity in the form of peer interviews and teacher questionnaire were completed. Results displayed that peers were able to use Pivotal Response Training strategies during recess with a child with autism. During post-training/intervention and follow-up sessions the child with autism engaged in higher levels of communication to peers, and slightly lower levels of communication to self. The target child also experienced a decreasing trend in levels of solitary play, an increasing trend in levels of play with peer trainers and levels of parallel play remained near baseline levels. Peers were also able to generalize these skills to an untrained environment to an extent.

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One in 59 children is identified as having an Autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that students with disabilities be educated in the general education setting with typical peers to the maximum extent possible. This practice of inclusion has led to increased social-isolation and peer rejection among students with ASD. Research suggests inclusion alone without implementing peer intervention training is ineffective in fostering positive interactions between students with ASD and their typical peers. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature by evaluating a peer educational intervention designed to promote positive peer relations among students with ASD, as well as, examine the effects of a peer educational intervention on typical peers’ perceived level of self-efficacy in interacting with students with ASD.

L’inclusion scolaire des enfants en situation de handicap devient une priorité des politiques éducatives. Les enfants ayant un Trouble du Spectre de l’Autisme (TSA) sont donc concernés par ces transformations. Cette thèse qui s’inscrit dans le champ de la psychopathologie développementale poursuit un double objectif. D’une part, il s’agit d’analyser les trajectoires développementales d’enfants ayant un TSA scolarisés dans le cadre d’un dispositif innovant d’inclusion (étude 1). D’autre part, il s’agit d’évaluer les effets de deux interventions de médiation par les pairs, appliquées dans le cadre de la théorie socio-constructiviste du développement, et mises en œuvre en situation de jeu symbolique (étude 2) ou de travail sur une tablette numérique (étude 3). Au total, 18 enfants ayant un TSA et 26 au développement typique ont pris part à cette thèse. Après deux ans de suivi longitudinal, les résultats de l’étude 1 montrent que les enfants ayant un TSA progressent sur le plan du développement cognitif et socio-communicatif, et ce malgré une importante variabilité interindividuelle. L’ampleur des progrès réalisés par les enfants est associée à plusieurs facteurs tels que l’âge chronologique, le niveau de fonctionnement intellectuel non-verbal et le niveau de langage. Les résultats des études 2 et 3, quant à eux, montrent que d’entraîner les enfants typiques à interagir avec leurs camarades ayant un TSA peut avoir des effets bénéfiques sur les compétences socio-communicatives de ces derniers. Chez tous les enfants typiques, une augmentation du nombre de conduites de tutelle est également observée suite à la mise en œuvre de l’intervention. Cela ouvre des perspectives prometteuses en termes de pratiques éducatives susceptibles d’être mises en œuvre en milieu scolaire pour favoriser l’inclusion des élèves ayant un TSA. / Inclusive education of children with disabilities becomes a priority of educational policies. Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are therefore concerned by these transformations. This thesis which falls in the developmental psychopathology research field pursues a dual objective. On the one hand, we examined the developmental trajectories of children with ASD who attended a new inclusive classroom (study 1). On the other hand, we evaluated the effect of two peer-mediated interventions, applied within the socio-constructivist framework, and implemented in symbolic play setting (study 2) or during academic activities on digital tablet (study 3). 18 children with ASD and 26 children with typical development were involved in this thesis. After two years of follow-up, results of the study 1 showed that children with ASD significantly progress in terms of cognitive and socio-communicative skills. However, a large variability between children was also noted. The extent of children’s progress was associated with several factors such as chronological age, non-verbal intelligence and language abilities. Results of the studies 2 and 3 showed that train typical peers about the way to interact with their ASD buddies can improve socio-communicative skills of children with ASD. All typical participants also demonstrated an immediate increase in the number of tutoring behaviors after the introduction of the intervention. These results open promising perspectives in terms of educational practices that could be implemented in school setting to promote inclusion of students with ASD.