problem solving social stories

Using Social Stories in Speech Therapy

What is it.

A social story is exactly what it sounds like: a brief, simple story designed to teach children about social situations and appropriate responses. Social stories were originally developed in 1991 by Carol Gray of The Gray Center. Gray had been a consultant to students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) . Social stories were originally intended solely for use by those with ASD; however, they can also be helpful for improving communication in non-autistic children.

What Do Social Stories Address?

Children with autism typically have difficulty with reciprocal social interactions. That is, they cannot or do not wish to interact with their peers. They often have difficulty maintaining the flow of a conversation, they might offer inappropriate responses, or they might obsessively talk about one specific topic. Social stories are designed to address these communication issues.

How Do Social Stories Work?

Social stories are intended to work by providing frameworks for the child’s social interactions. They provide clear, easy-to-follow descriptions of social situations and the appropriate responses and behaviors. It has also been suggested that social stories may help children to organize social cues and reduce social anxiety. This might allow a child to more effectively concentrate on the social situation.

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Social stories might also help reduce inappropriate behaviors and teach problem-solving skills. However, it’s worth noting that some object to the use of social stories to teach appropriate social responses because of the possibility that this technique teaches just one response to a situation.

How Are Social Stories Written?

Social stories use simple descriptive sentences to provide basic details about a situation. They also use perspective sentences to describe possible emotional responses. Directive sentences inform the child of socially acceptable responses and behaviors. These are the basic types of sentences; some social stories may use others.

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Social stories are written from the child’s point of view, in first person. They are always written in the present tense. Teachers, parents, and speech-language pathologists (SLP) can customize a social story to match the child’s comprehension and vocabulary. Some examples of social stories are available at The Gray Center’s website.

How to Use Social Stories

Social stories should be read aloud with the child two or more times. The parent, teacher, or SLP will then use role-play to check the child’s comprehension. For example, you might say, “Let’s make-believe that we’re at the beach. What happens at the beach?” Each day, reread the social stories that you and your child and currently working on until your child no longer needs them.

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IRIE Classroom Social Problem-Solving Stories

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The IRIE Classroom Stories Book includes fourteen pictorial stories that include common problems faced by young children in school and how to overcome them (e.g. how to share materials, waiting for a turn, and working together). The stories are suitable for children aged 3-8 years and aim to promote children’s social and emotional skills. The stories have no words and the pictures are used to promote discussion and to encourage children to problem-solve. Each story has a one-page teacher guide giving guidance on the aims, key vocabulary, discussion points and suggested questions. The stories are available for download as a complete set or as individual books.

Alex and the Red & Yellow Truck

Two children want to play with the same truck. How do the children feel and what can they do to solve the problem?

Alicia and the Beautiful Dolly

Two children want to play with the same doll. How do the children feel and what can they do to solve the problem?

The Toy Shelf

One child wants a toy that another child is using. She asks to share but the other child says no. How does she feel and what can she do?

The Special Book

Two children want the same picture book. The teacher gives the book to one of the children. The other child is given a different book. How do the children feel? What can they do to solve the problem?

Jealous Jessica and the Test Paper

Two children have done a test. One did very well. The other one didn’t do well and she is jealous. What can she do?

The Building Bunch

Three children are playing with blocks. One child takes nearly all the blocks. How do the other children feel? What can the children do to solve the problem?

The Demolished Tower

Four children are building an amazing tower and they are feeling excited and proud. One child makes a wrong move and the tower falls down. How do the children feel and what can they do?

Patrick and the Puzzling Puzzle

A child is doing a very hard puzzle. He gets frustrated. What can he do?

Lunchtime Lesson

A group of children are eating lunch. They have made a mess and only one child starts to clean up. The others do not help. How does the child who is cleaning feel? What can the children do to solve the problem?

The Shady Swing

Children are waiting for a turn to use the swing in the playground. One child won’t give the others a turn. How do the children feel? What can they do?

The Break Time Game

Children are outside playing at breaktime. One child is left out. How does he feel? What can the children do to help him?

Teasing Tristan

One child is teasing another child. How should the child react to being teased?

Sad Shanelle

One child is crying. What should the other children do?

Naughty Natalie

One child hits another child. How are the children feeling? What should they do?

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This website has downloadable resources for early childhood teachers to help them with classroom behaviour management, how to create an emotionally supportive classroom environment, and how to promote children’s social-emotional competence.

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30 Problem Solving Scenarios for Speech Therapy Practice

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Problem solving scenarios.

• Your friends came over to your house for a movie night. One of your friends brought another friend so there are more people than you planned for. You want to pass out the drinks but you only have five cans of soda and you need 6 for everyone to have one. What could you do?
• After basketball practice you go back to the locker room with your team to shower and change. When you are done dressing, you can't find your shoes. What could you do?
• You have been waiting all day for lunch to come because you are starving. Finally class gets over and you get to go to lunch. Except when you go to get to your lunch, it's not there. You probably left it at home. What could you do?
• There is a guy in your class who is always mean to you. He always bumps you when he walks by and he calls you names. He knocks stuff out of your hands and makes you feel stupid. You don't think you can take it anymore. What could you do?
• You really want to invite this new girl/guy to come to your birthday party, but you have never talked to them before. You are worried they will say no. What could you do?
• You rode the bus to school today and on the way in people are pointing and laughing at you. You go in the bathroom and see that you have pink gum all over the back of your pants. What could you do?
• You wake up and see that your alarm never went off. So you are starting your morning 15 minutes later than you planned. It is a really important day at school and you cannot be late. What could you do?
• You are giving a group presentation in front of class and it's your turn to talk. All of the sudden you sneeze. You cover it with your hand, but now your hand is full of stuff you sneezed out. What could you do?
• You are eating dinner at a fancy restaurant with your parents and their friends. You have a really messy dinner and accidentally flip a noodle into the lady's lap. They are busy talking and don't notice it. What could you do?
• You are taking a test and there is no talking allowed. You are writing your answers on the paper and your pencil breaks. What could you do?
• You are taking a test and the guy behind you asks you for help. He wants to know what you put for question number two. What could you do?
• You are at a birthday party and you have waited in line for a long time for your turn to hit the pinata. It is finally going to be your turn and it looks like the next hit will break the pinata. But you suddenly have to go to the bathroom. What could you do?
• You are hanging outside with your friend and she decides to pick your neighbor's flowers. She gives you the pretty handful of flowers and right then your neighbor opens the door. She asks you why you picked her flowers. What could you do?
• You borrowed your sister's skates one day without asking and they broke while you were using them. What could you do?
• You are eating at a friend's house and the mom piles your plate full of food. It looks really good and you want to eat it all but you can't because you just ate a snack. What could you do so you don't hurt her feelings?

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• Your teacher was working at her desk.  You wanted to ask her a question, but she didn't see your hand raised. What should you do?
• You started to do your work, but you weren't sure if you were doing it right. What should you do?
• You were playing tether-ball and were the champion so far.  In the next game, you slightly touched the rope.  Only one student saw you touch the rope. What will you do?
• The teacher is giving directions, but your friend sitting next to you keeps talking.  You can't hear the directions. What should you do?
• You didn't do your homework.  Your teacher was upset with you. What should you do?
• You finished eating and felt a burp coming. What are you going to do?
• You were waiting to swing.  When it was your turn, another boy jumped in front of you and took the swing. What would you do?
• You waited a long time, but your mom didn't come to pick you up after school. What should you do?
• A bully threatened to beat you up after school. What should you do?
• A boy on the playground keeps pushing you and making you mad. What would you do?
• You were sitting in class doing your work and you hear the fire alarm. What should you do?
• An adult you didn't know came on to the playground and asked if you would help look for his lost dog. What would you do?
• You forgot your lunch at home. What would you do?
• The person sitting behind you keeps tapping your chair with his foot. What should you do?
• You finished your work early. What should you do?

This list of functional words was professionally selected to be the most useful for a child or adult who has difficulty with problem solving scenarios.

We encourage you to use this list when practicing at home.

Home practice will make progress toward meeting individual language goals much faster.

Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs) are only able to see students/clients 30-60 mins (or less) per week. This is not enough time or practice for someone to handle Problem solving scenarios.

Every day that your loved one goes without practice it becomes more difficult to help them. 

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We know life is busy , but if you're reading this you're probably someone who cares about helping their loved one as much as you can.

Practice 5-10 minutes whenever you can, but try to do it on a consistent basis (daily).

Please, please, please use this list to practice.

It will be a great benefit to you and your loved one's progress.

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Social Stories for Teens: Overcoming Everyday Challenges

Introduction to social sketches for teenagers.

Social stories for teenagers can be helpful tools to learn important skills and navigate complex situations. The teenage years present numerous social challenges that can be overwhelming for many teens, including neurotypical high school students. However, older students with autism or ADHD may find it even more perplexing to navigate social rules and expectations that may seem natural to others.

Social stories for teenagers and autism little learners offer a valuable solution by providing structured narratives that help reduce anxiety, boost self-esteem, develop coping strategies, and develop essential teenagers social skills. These stories serve as effective tools to address different situations and various social scenarios for teens and parents, and provide guidance on appropriate behaviors and responses.

Why Teens Need Social Stories

The teenage years present countless scenarios that some learners find overwhelming or confusing without guidance. Here are some reasons why they are great for teens and children of all ages:

• Improved Social Understanding: They explain clear and concrete examples of social scenarios, helping the child understand the expectations and norms associated with various interactions. This can lead to improved social understanding and awareness of appropriate behaviors in various social scenarios in and out of the classroom.
• Reduced Social Anxiety: Teenagers with autism or anxiety often experience heightened anxiety in social situations. Social stories, including autism social scripts can help alleviate anxiety by providing a structured and predictable framework for understanding and navigating scenarios.
• Enhanced Self-Confidence: By familiarizing themselves with expectations and appropriate responses through a story for teenagers, teenagers can feel more confident when engaging with others socially.
• Improved Problem-Solving Skills: Through reading and discussing these stories, teenagers can develop problem-solving skills and learn to consider various perspectives and outcomes. This can contribute to their ability to navigate conflicts, as well as engage in effective conflict scenarios for teens, younger children, and even adults.
• Increased Empathy and Perspective-Taking: Social stories often incorporate characters with different thoughts, feelings, and perspectives. By engaging with these narratives and pictures, teenagers can develop empathy and practice perspective-taking, which are essential skills for building positive relationships. This is particularly important for skills for teens with autism.
• Generalization of Skills: These stories can help teenagers apply learned skills across different contexts and settings. By understanding the underlying principles and strategies presented in the stories, teenagers can transfer what to expect and a certain routine to real-life situations. This can be further reinforced through engaging in social skills activities for teenagers with autism.
• Promotion of Independence: These stories provide teenagers with a sense of agency and autonomy in navigating different scenarios. By equipping them with the necessary skills and strategies, they promote independence and empower teenagers to handle all situations with increasing confidence, increasing overall health and well-being.

By incorporating social stories into the lives of teenagers, especially those with special needs, autism, or learning differences, we can support their development and help them acquire the necessary skills for teenagers to thrive in various social settings.

Common Social Situations for Teens and How to Navigate Them

Teens often find themselves in various social situations that can be both exciting and challenging. To help them navigate these encounters effectively, social stories can be a valuable written and visual tool. Here are some common situations for teens and how these stories can assist in managing them:

Going on a Job Interview

Job interviews require impression management skills. A narrative highlights professional attire, making eye contact, having relevant questions prepared, and a strategy for following up properly. This helps reduce anxiety around employment conversations. Social stories can break down the interview process into smaller, manageable chunks, covering topics such as:

• Greeting the interviewer politely
• Asking thoughtful question
• Handling job offers gracefully
• Coping with rejection
• Learning from interview experiences for future opportunities

Asking Someone on a Date

Asking someone on a date can feel intimidating for teenagers. A social story can provide a step-by-step approach, beginning by guiding them in building the confidence to initiate the conversation, suggesting a specific date idea, and responding. An example story can provide guidance on breaking it down into smaller, manageable steps, including:

• Building confidence
• Initiating the conversation
• Suggesting a specific date idea
• Responding graciously to various answers

Being Offered Alcohol or Drugs

Peer pressure and offers of substances are common challenges for teenagers. These stories can assist in recognizing peer pressure, practicing polite refusals when offered substances, and suggesting alternative activities to maintain social connections. It can also assist by breaking down the situation into manageable components, such as:

• Recognizing peer pressure
• Saying "no" respectfully
• Offering alternative activities
• Nurturing healthy friendships

Joining a School Club

Joining after-school clubs is an excellent way for teenagers to expand their social circles and explore leadership opportunities. Social stories can guide them in observing a club meeting, identifying shared interests, and approaching the club's leadership to inquire about joining. A story can illustrate how to approach this process, covering:

• Observing a club meeting
• Talking to the club president
• Becoming an active member

Chatting at a Party

Social gatherings and parties require specific skills. A narrative can guide teenagers by breaking the process into smaller, actionable components, such as:

• Initiating conversations
• Polite and respectful interaction
• Graceful excusing

Working on a Group Project

Collaborating on group projects demands effective communication and teamwork. Stories can break down the process into manageable steps, such as:

• Project planning and task delegation
• Learning to compromise
• Communicate respectfully
• Acknowledge the efforts of their peers

Greeting Adults at a Gathering

Interacting with unfamiliar adults can develop a teenager's confidence and poise. Social stories can guide them in starting interactions with a smile, making eye contact, offering a polite handshake, and initiating conversations by asking simple questions. A story can demonstrate the process, covering:

• Starting with a positive introduction

How to Craft Effective Social Stories for Teens

Crafting impactful these stories requires some planning and attention to detail. Follow these steps to create narratives that resonate with teenage learners:

• Identify the Social Skill or Situation: Brainstorm specific skills your teen wishes to develop, such as starting conversations, dealing with confrontation, or managing stress.
• Gather Relevant Details: Note setting, individuals involved, behaviors expected, potential responses, and desired outcomes. Interview your teen to learn their perspective.
• Adopt Your Teen's Point of View: Refer to "I" and "me" instead of your teen's name when writing from their first-person perspective. This promotes empathy.
• Keep Language Simple and Straightforward: Use short, concrete sentences teens can easily understand. Avoid ambiguity, sarcasm or idioms which could confuse.
• Integrate Interests: Mention favorite activities, books, movies or role models within stories whenever possible. Link skills to innate motivations.
• Add Illustrations: Snap photos related to the story setting and characters. Sketch or find basic clip art depicting key details. Visuals aid comprehension.
• Review Structure: Each story should have an introduction, body and conclusion. Guide your teen through the sequence of events step-by-step.
• Emphasize a Positive Tone: Focus narratives on appropriate, successful behaviors rather than what to avoid. End with optimism to boost self-efficacy.
• Personalize for Your Teen: Customize stories to real-life contexts and people in their world. Details should feel tailored, not too generic.
• Practice Enacting Stories: Role play scenarios with your teen so they can embody characters and experience flows of interaction firsthand.

With care and dedication to these principles, impactful stories can be crafted to benefit teenagers on the autism spectrum. Build skills through engaging, personally relevant narratives.

Developing social skills is crucial for teenagers, especially those with autism or other learning differences. Social stories provide a valuable tool to teach and reinforce appropriate behaviors and responses in various social situations. With continued support and guidance, we can foster the social development of autistic teenagers and help them thrive in their personal and academic lives as young adults.

Incorporating the Social Stories

Starting a conversation about some of the adolescent-related social situations may be awkward. The story can act as the conversation starter itself. Teenagers will look at it and it is almost guaranteed that someone will have a comment or question. This allows the students to initially guide the conversation. As the moderator, it will be easy to figure out what they may or may not already know about the topic and take the conversation in the necessary direction. This approach can be helpful in maintaining their interest in the conversation as well.

Adolescence can be a difficult age group to teach social situations to. Storyboarding allows for a fun, yet age-appropriate representation of adolescent scenarios. The ever-growing library of scenes and categories on Storyboard That also allows for a wider range of situations to cover the needs of the users.

More Examples

If you are new to social stories, please read our introduction to social stories that covers the basics of and how to make effective examples.

For a closer look, please see all of our social story articles:

How to Embed Social Stories in the Curriculum

Identify relevant social skills.

Identify the specific social skills or behaviors that you want to address in your curriculum. Determine the key areas where students may benefit from social stories, such as communication, empathy, conflict resolution, or self-regulation.

Design Social Stories

Create social stories that target the identified social skills. Develop narratives that are relatable to your students and present the desired behaviors in a clear and positive manner. Use age-appropriate language and include visual elements to enhance understanding.

Determine Appropriate Integration Points

Identify opportunities within your curriculum where the social stories can be integrated effectively. Look for natural connections between the targeted social skills and the subject matter or activities. Consider both explicit and implicit ways to incorporate the stories.

Introduce Social Stories

Introduce the social stories to your students within the designated curriculum context. Provide a brief explanation of the purpose and relevance of the story. Engage students in reading or discussing the story together, allowing for questions and clarifications.

Reinforce and Practice

Reinforce the social skills presented in the social stories through various activities and exercises. Provide opportunities for students to practice and apply the targeted behaviors in real-life situations. Offer guidance, feedback, and support during these practice sessions.

Reflect and Evaluate

Facilitate reflection and evaluation of the effectiveness of the embedded social stories. Encourage students to discuss their experiences, share any challenges or successes, and reflect on their growth in the targeted social skills. Make adjustments to the integration and implementation as needed.

Frequently Asked Questions about Social Stories for Teens

What is a social story.

It is a short, simple narrative that describes a social situation, skill, or concept. It is designed to help individuals understand and navigate social interactions.

How do social stories benefit teens?

They can help teens with social and communication difficulties by providing clear explanations and expectations for various social situations. They promote understanding and reduce anxiety in social settings.

Can social stories be used for addressing bullying or peer conflicts?

Yes, they can be tailored to address issues such as bullying, conflict resolution, and appropriate ways to respond to negative behavior. They provide a framework for understanding and responding to social challenges.

How do I introduce social stories to a teenager?

Introduce them in a positive and non-judgmental way. Emphasize that they are tools to help understand social situations better and improve communication skills. It can be helpful to involve the teen in creating or customizing their own.

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Social Stories for Adolescents and Young Adults

Written by:

  Rebekah Pierce

Filed under: Social Skills

Published:  August 28, 2020

Last Reviewed: May 14, 2024

READING TIME:  ~ minutes

For young children with autism, social stories have long been used as a tool to help children learn how to behave and engage in various social interactions. Not only can social stories teach new social skills, but they can also educate learners on the best ways to regulate their behavior.

Until recently, social stories have long been used as an instructional tool only for very young children (those in preschool, elementary, and even middle grades). However, social stories are increasingly being used as effective tools for older students – even those who are beginning to explore the transition out of adolescence into adulthood.

But are social stories for adolescents the same as they are for younger children, both in terms of their execution and their efficacy? Here’s what you need to know.

The History of Social Stories

Social stories are often used as programming recommendations for individuals with autism or other pervasive developmental disorders. They can be used by both a family member, a teacher, a coach , or any other person in a student’s life to help enforce the development of various social skills .

The term “social story” was first coined by Carol Gray in 1991. The stories are designed to share information about how to react appropriately in a given setting. Social stories work because they address specific issues that children with autism might have, such as play skills, the use of body language, social communication , and understanding emotions.

Social stories have long been regarded as one of the best tools educators and parents have for producing positive long-term outcomes for individuals with autism. Initially, social stories contained four types of sentences with a “sentence type ratio.” These stories had descriptive, directive, perspective, and affirmative sentences. These stories were usually presented via written text.

Today, social stories can exist in other formats, like storytelling, singing, computer-based presentations, and even videos. They tend to have a few more additional components but always contain the four descriptive, directive, perspective, and affirmative sentences.

All social stories, at their core, should contain language that is at least 50% positive . Most sentences should be descriptive and not utilize terms like “you should” or “you need to.”

How to Implement Social Stories

At the core, a social story has several basic components. It will tell the viewer what the people in a particular situation might be thinking, doing or feeling, along with an appropriate sequence of events. The social story will also identify significant social causes and their significance and provide a script of what to say or do.

An effective social story covers the who, what, when, where, and why of a given situation. It can be used to meet several goals: to help a child understand a rule or routine, to prepare someone for an upcoming event, to solidify an abstract concept, or to reaffirm expectations.

For a long time, it was believed that social stories only worked with children who were higher functioning. However, now, we know that social stories can also be beneficial for students with more severe learning disabilities as long as those differences in ability are accommodated for in the delivery of the story.

For example, a social story for a child with a severe reading impairment might contain just one concept at a time with pictures added in for extra meaning.

It only makes sense that social stories can also work well for older children – even those approaching adulthood.

What’s crucial in creating a social story for an older child is that it is relevant . You need to start by thinking about the main goal of the social story. Usually, a social story is meant to directly teach a social rule or cue. You will need to be able to provide accurate information of the concepts that need to be learned.

Then, try to gather some information on the topic. Think about the following factors:

• When it occurs
• Where it occurs
• Who is involved
• What to do in the situation
• Why people behave in certain ways

You need to have a concrete, clear idea of the answers to each of these questions. If you can’t envision the correct answer yourself, how can you expect your student to be able to learn that concept?

Then, tailor the text. A social story will contain several core aspects. It will be written from a first-person perspective, ideally in three parts consisting of an introduction, body, and conclusion. It will use positive language (try to avoid terms like “do not” and “shouldn’t”) and will have at least two to five descriptive, perspective, and affirmative sentences.

While social stories for young children are usually quite short, those for older kids can be a bit longer. Usually, they’re about one to two paragraphs, written on a single page. You can use pictures, but keep them age-appropriate. The student should always be the main character. Make sure you take the reading level of your student into consideration, too.

Beyond these basic guidelines, you have some liberty to be a bit creative. You can tailor the social story to the needs of the student with which you are working, along with his or her personality and background.

Does the student enjoy comics? Make a social story that is a comic strip! Are videos more ideal? That’s another option you can explore. Some of the most commonly used social stories for teens and young adults include:

• How to avoid peer pressure
• How to say “no” to a date
• What to wear to a job interview
• How to react in various bullying situations
• How to ask relevant questions
• Internet safety
• How to accept a job offer

It can be awkward to initiate a social story with a teen. To be fair, starting a conversation about any of these relevant topics for teens can be awkward! Try to use the social stories as conversation starters and steer the conversation in the appropriate direction to cover all of your student’s needs.

Here’s a good formula to follow when creating a social story:

• Begin by explaining the current behavior. What’s going on? What’s the problem?
• Next, explain the targeted behavior.
• Offer alternatives to the behavior.
• Resolve the situation in a positive way.

Best Alternatives to Social Stories

While some research states that the research that states that the effectiveness of social stories is questionable, most practitioners agree that social stories are not ineffective .

Simply put, social stories shouldn’t be one piece in the puzzle. Social stories are most effective when used in conjunction with other interventions – and that’s true of using social stories both with young children and with young adults.

There are other alternatives to using social stories as behavioral interventions. One is Cool vs. Not Cool. This program is a discrimination program that is meant to be played at a structured indoor game. It works best with a group, but involves role playing and is a fun way for students to learn play skills.

As you might expect, this strategy works best for younger children, although it could work well with older students depending on the context and cognitive level of the students in question.

You might also want to consider strategies like social cartooning , which can help define and describe social expectations in a more accessible way.

One of the common trends among all of these alternatives, social stories included, is that they provide students with clearly structured social situations and well-defined expectations. When students know what to expect, they are better able to react and behave appropriately in a given situation. Teaching skills like imitation and context clues can be effective.

Another effective – yet often overlooked – strategy? Find peers who model strong social skills and pair your child with them. This will not only provide peers with strategies for communication and response but it can also help keep the skill development as natural as possible.

Leave a comment below to let us know what your favorite strategy is.

How to Transition Out of Using Social Stories

Much of the effectiveness of a social story has to do with the delivery. There is a significant amount of research that shows that strategies like priming, positive reinforcement, imitation, and prompting are effective ways to teach students with autism. Therefore, your use of social stories should include all of these methods as well.

Social stories are most effective when they are simple and used to describe single behaviors. They are also most effective when children are allowed to read the stories on their own and ideally, right before they are expected to engage in the target situation.

There will come a time when social stories are no longer effective – or realistic – for certain students. Therefore, it’s important that the transition out of the use of social stories starts automatically – from the very beginning of their use.

While you are using social stories, it’s important that you don’t neglect other parts of communication that will be essential for success in adulthood. For example:

• Teach context clues and how to reference the behavior of those around you for clues on what to do (for example, if everybody is clapping, you should clap, too)
• Celebrate strengths of a student and teach the student how to use those strengths in everyday social interactions (if sense of humor is a strong point, teach appropriate use of humor in various social situations)
• Teach empathy and reciprocity – often, students with autism have trouble “reading a room,” so to speak, and need specific training in how to adjust their behavior given certain cues
• Make training in positive social interactions a regular part of everyday routines – instead of occasional lessons

Examples and Case Studies to Help You Get Started

There are all kinds of apps and programs you can use to create social stories. A few worth mentioning include Pictello , Book Creator , and Pic Collage , all of which can help you put together multiple photos and chunks of text to create an engaging social story.

These are great introductory tools, but if you would like to be formally trained on how to create social stories, you should check out this training module . It’s a great way to train yourself on how to develop effective and applicable social stories for learners of all ages.

Still not sure where to start?

Just enter your email below to receive social story templates.

In the first template, I’ve provided you with a worksheet that can be used to create your own social story. You’ll be able to walk through each step to figure out which components are necessary in your story.

In this second template, you will find an example that is a bit more specific. This template deals with a common situation for adolescents with autism – the tendency to be late for classes or jobs.

You can change this template to meet the specific situation you are trying to address. You can also simply change the name and background information of the student in question to match the profile of the student with whom you are working.

Do Social Stories Work For Adolescents and Young Adults?

If you are considering using social stories with older children and young adults, don’t be deterred by the assumption that these techniques are only effective for very young children. While social stories don’t work with everyone – and should rarely be used as a sole intervention tool – they can definitely be one piece of a very effective puzzle.

Thinking about trying social stories? Use a few of the examples we’ve given you above. Make sure you consult with the key people involved in a situation, too, to help give you a better idea of how you can make the social story more effective.

A social story is most effective if you have an idea of why an individual is engaging in a specific behavior. Conducting a detailed behavioral analysis and meeting with other stakeholders will help you figure out why a child is struggling with a certain behavior so that you can create a more targeted, more effective social story.

Don’t forget to evaluate your success afterward, too! Whether you’re a parent or an educator, the best thing you can do when implementing social stories for an adolescent – or for a child of any age – is to be constantly revisiting, reviewing, and revising your approach as needed. Good luck!

Further Reading

• Life Skills Advocate blog: How To Write a Social Story (Step-by-Step Guide)
• Carol Gray: The New Social Story Book
• Carol Gray: Comic Strip Conversations
• Carol Gray: A Social Story for the Rest of Us
• All titles by Carol Gray
• Pandemic Social Stories Direct Access by Carol Gray
• Jean Hamersky: Cartoon Cut-Ups: Teaching Figurative Language & Humor
• Beverly Vicker: Behavioral Issues and the Use of Social Stories
• Nebraska Autism Spectrum Disorders Network at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Social Stories
• Behav Anal Pract: The Effects of the Cool Versus Not Cool Procedure to Teach Social Game Play to Individuals Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Anastasia Kokina, Lee Kern: Social Story Interventions for Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Meta-Analysis
• Cool vs. Not Cool curriculum
• Life Skills Advocate: Using Social Stories to Teach Internet Safety Skills to Teens

About The Author

Rebekah pierce.

Rebekah is a New York writer and teacher who specializes in writing in the education, gardening, health, and natural food niches. In addition to teaching and writing, she also owns a farm and is the author of the blog J&R Pierce Family Farm .

Related Posts

How to make planning a date executive function friendly, how to write a social story (a step-by-step guide), comfort, stretch and panic zones in social skills development.

Life Skills Advocate is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Some of the links in this post may be Amazon.com affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase, Life Skills Advocate will earn a commission. However, we only promote products we actually use or those which have been vetted by the greater community of families and professionals who support individuals with diverse learning needs.

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The Pathway 2 Success

Solutions for Social Emotional Learning & Executive Functioning

Teaching Social Problem-Solving with a Free Activity

February 3, 2018 by pathway2success 5 Comments

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Kids and young adults need to be able to problem-solve on their own. Every day, kids are faced with a huge number of social situations and challenges. Whether they are just having a conversation with a peer, working with a group on a project, or dealing with an ethical dilemma, kids must use their social skills and knowledge to help them navigate tough situations. Ideally, we want kids to make positive choices entirely on their own. Of course, we know that kids don’t start off that way. They need to learn how to collaborate, communicate, cooperate, negotiate, and self-advocate.

Social problem solving skills are critical skills to learn for kids with autism, ADHD, and other social challenges. Of course, all kids and young adults benefit from these skills. They fit perfectly into a morning meeting discussion or advisory periods for older kids. Not only are these skills that kids will use in your classroom, but throughout their entire lives. They are well worth the time to teach!

Here are 5 steps to help kids learn social problem solving skills:

1. Teach kids to communicate their feelings. Being able to openly and respectfully share emotions is a foundational element to social problem solving. Teaching I statements can be a simple and effective way to kids to share their feelings. With an I statement, kids will state, “I feel ______ when _____.” The whole idea is that this type of statement allows someone to share how their feeling without targeting or blaming anyone else. Helping kids to communicate their emotions can solve many social problems from the start and encourages positive self-expression.

2. Discuss and model empathy. In order for kids to really grasp problem-solving, they need to learn how to think about the feelings of others. Literature is a great way teach and practice empathy! Talk about the feelings of characters within texts you are reading, really highlighting how they might feel in situations and why. Ask questions like, “How might they feel? Why do you think they felt that way? Would you feel the same in that situation? Why or why not?” to help teach emerging empathy skills. You can also make up your own situations and have kids share responses, too.

3. Model problem-solving skills. When a problem arises, discuss it and share some solutions how you might go forward to fix it. For example, you might say, “I was really expecting to give the class this math assignment today but I just found out we have an assembly. This wasn’t in my plans. I could try to give part of it now or I could hold off and give the assignment tomorrow instead. It’s not perfect, but I think I’ll wait that way we can go at the pace we need to.” This type of think-aloud models the type of thinking that kids should be using when a problem comes up.

4. Use social scenarios to practice. Give a scenario and have kids consider how that person might feel in that situation. Discuss options for what that person might do to solve the problem, possible consequences for their choices, and what the best decision might be. Kids can consider themselves social detectives by using the clues and what they know about social rules to help them figure out the solution. These are especially fun in small groups to have kids discuss collaboratively. Use these free social problem solving cards to start your kids off practicing!

5. Allow kids to figure it out. Don’t come to the rescue when a child or young adult has a problem. As long as it’s not a serious issue, give them time to think about it and use their problem-solving skills on their own. Of course, it’s much easier to have an adult solve all the problems but that doesn’t teach the necessary skills. When a child comes to you asking for your help with a social problem, encourage them to think about it for five minutes before coming back to you. By that point, they might have already figured out possible solutions and ideas and might not even need you anymore.

If you are interested in helping your kids learn social problem solving skills right away, consider trying out these Social Problem Solving Task Cards . They highlight real social scenarios and situations that kids can discuss. The scenarios include a variety of locations, such as in classrooms, with family, with friends, at recess, and at lunch. This set is targeted for elementary-age learners.

Of course, older kids need social problem solving skills, too! If you work with older kids, you will love these Social Problem Solving Task Cards for Middle and High School Kids. These situations target age-appropriate issues that come up in classes, with friends, with family, in the hallway, in the cafeteria, and with online and texting.

Remember that teaching social problem skills does take a little bit of planning and effort, but it will be well worth the time! Kids will use these skills to help them make social decisions in their everyday lives now and in the future!

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February 22, 2018 at 12:03 am

Thank you for sharing>

March 3, 2018 at 8:59 am

Good thought ful

March 20, 2018 at 9:24 pm

They are not free

March 21, 2018 at 8:58 am

They are! Here is the link (it’s listed under number 4): https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Social-Problem-Solving-Task-Cards-2026178 I also have a paid version with a bunch more cards (for both elementary and older kids), but that will give you the freebie. Enjoy!

July 15, 2018 at 3:41 am

Awesome way to teach the skill of social problem solving.

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Social Stories Problem Solving Activities & Skills Strategies & Scenarios

# of pages: 44, file type(s): zip, pdf.

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Description

Do you have students who struggle with determining whether their problems are big or small? Does EVERY problem, and decision-making situation, regardless of the size, seem to result in a BIG reaction?If the answer is yes, then this Problem Solving Social Story & Emotional Regulation Activities Set is just what you need.  This set includes an engaging and informative social story and multiple high-interest activities .  Perfect for strengthening social emotional learning in your classroom, and guiding your students in developing a strong understanding of strategies and techniques to support problem solving .

This engaging social story and easy-to-use activities make this resource ideal for cultivating a classroom environment that fosters healthy self management, social awareness, and responsible decision making . Reusable and substitute-friendly, this Problem Solving Social Story & Emotional Regulation Activities Set is going to make teaching social-emotional learning a breeze!

This high-quality social story is written in kid-friendly language and takes the guesswork out of teaching your students about problem solving strategies.The social story comes in a printable and projectable PDF version, Google®️ slides, and a narrated video version, making it versatile enough for use whether you are teaching in person or virtually. The fun and engaging activities included will enable students to build confidence and develop a deeper understanding of self and relationships.

☝ CLICK ON THE PREVIEW ABOVE to get a closer look at the contents of this resource.

What kind of activities will you get with this Problem Solving Social Story & Activities Set ?

✅ social story- A colorful social story, written in kid-friendly language, provided in 3 different versions to accommodate your teaching needs: printable & projectable PDF, GOOGLE®️ SLIDES, AND narrated VIDEO

✅ comprehension check page- Included with the google slides and video version

✅ discussion cards- Delve deeper into the skills being taught with thought-provoking comprehension questions.

✅ classroom posters – These colorful, high-quality classroom posters mirror the important points covered in the social stories and break them down into even simpler kid-friendly language.

✅ student reference cards- These print-and-go reference cards provide additional social skill tips and tricks that are perfect for meeting individual student needs. These personal reference cards build student confidence and empower students to be independent as they manage their social and emotional growth.

✅ role-playing activity cards- Concrete practice of skills through fun role-playing activities and situations.

✅ easy reader mini books – The social skill being focused on is further broken down in a way for students to read, review, and remember. These mini-books are printable in black and white so that the children can color them.

✅ activity pages/assessment – Easily assess what the students have learned about the important social skills being taught.

✅ answer keys- Each activity page/assessment comes with an easy-to-read answer key.

✅ positive student notes- Motivate your students with these positive student notes that celebrate the growth and learning of new social skills. Notes contain a fun poem or verse that supports the skill being taught. Black & white and color versions included.

What skills are included in the Problem Solving Social Story & Activities Set ?

✏️Skills focus:

• what is a problem
• Examples of common problems children face at school
• how to determine the size of a problem
• what reaction would be appropriate to the problem

✨ IDEAS FOR THE USE OF THIS PRODUCT ✨

• This social skills set is perfect for whole-class instruction, both when you want to introduce a new social skill, or when your students are struggling with a particular skill or topic.
• This set is  also fantastic for small group instruction of target social skills, and individual instruction for students needing extra guidance and reinforcement of skills because of behavior problems, autism, or special needs.
• Social stories seem to have the greatest impact when they are read multiple times, and in my classroom we would often focus on one story/skill per week.
• Some great ways to incorporate these social skills lessons into your daily routine are:

→to use them as time-fillers throughout the day

→present them during class meetings

→make them part of your morning routine

→engage families in the learning by using the social story and some of the activities as take-home reviews.

You won’t be disappointed with the engagement level and the powerful impact this resource will have on your classroom community!

Here is what TEACHERS LIKE YOU SAID…

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Nicole T. says “Good social story for size of my problem. There are not many out there with this quality that you can refer back to when situations arise in the classroom. I will also be using this in my distance learning lessons.”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Lacey A. says “ This has become a game changer when working with my social skills patients! I love the way it’s set up to teach first, then give lots of practice. Great visuals too!”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Stephanie S.  says “ This is such a hard skill for kids to develop.  Practicing it in a fun way makes it so much more engaging for them . Great visuals and interactive!”

Supports Common Core Standards (CCSS):

• RI.K.1, RI.K.2, RI.K.7, W.K.8, SL.K.1, SL.K.2, SL.K.4, SL.K.5, SL.K.6, L.K.1, L.K.6
• RI.1.1, RI.1.2, RI.1.7, W.1.8, SL.1.1, SL.1.2, SL.1.4, SL.1.5, SL.1.6, L.1.1, L.1.6
• RI.2.1, RI.2.2, RI.2.7, W.2.8, SL.2.1, SL.2.2, SL.2.4, SL.2.5, SL.2.6, L.2.1, L.2.6
• RI.3.1, RI.3.2, RI.3.7, SL.3.1, SL.3.2, SL.3.4, SL.3.6, L.3.1, L.3.6
• RI.4.1, SL.4.1, SL.4.6, L.4.1, L.4.6

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Social problem stories

Examples from our community, 8,811 results for 'social problem stories'.

Kathy B SLP

Problem Solving Scenarios for Kids

What is Social Problem Solving?

Social problem solving is a process of recognizing difficulties and adapting or changing to resolve problems that we encounter in everyday living.  Social problem solving is an essential life skill.  Strong problem-solving skills are important in social interactions throughout life.  Young children learn social problem-solving skills like learning to share and asking for preferred items.  They learn to use the right words, tone of voice, and body language.  They also learn to read the body language and tone of voice of others.  They learn to make social inferences and understand the perspectives of others.  As children grow and develop social problem-solving skills become more complex.  Children with strong social problem-solving skills respond better to stress.  They are also more likely to be successful in personal and professional interactions as they get older.

Kids have to solve social problems throughout their days in school.  These issues range from requesting help in the classroom to joining in with a basketball game on the playground.  Kids learn many of these problem-solving skills through maturity, experience, and adult direction.  Other times more direct teaching is necessary.

How Can we help students learn Social Problem Solving Skills?

•  Teach kids to communicate their feelings in a calm way.  As adults, we know that misunderstanding causes many problems in social interactions.  Difficulty understanding the perspective of someone else also causes problems.
• Help students learn to identify problems.  Sometimes kids don’t recognize nonverbal clues that there is a social problem.
• Model social problem skills for students.  Talk about social problems that occur throughout the day.  Model social problem solving and talk about your thinking.
• Use problem-solving scenarios for kids to practice social problem-solving.  By using hypothetical problems kids can gain important social skills.

What are problem solving scenarios?

Jill’s class is on a field trip to a museum.  Jill wasn’t paying attention and lost her group.  Now she is by herself.  What is the problem?  How can Jill solve her problem? 

Your classmate is passing out cupcakes and she did not give one to you.  How do you feel?  What can you do?

Y ou are doing a math paper in class but you are confused about how to do some of it.  What can you do?

It is your birthday and your grandmother just gave you a present.  It’s a really boring sweater.  What should you do?

Your friend at school is sitting by himself at recess and looking really sad.  What can you do?  

Jack and Yasine want to play a game but they want to play different games.  They are arguing.  What can they do?

You are at a friend’s house for dinner and they are going to eat lobster.  You are allergic to lobster and shellfish.  What should you do?  What would you say?  

These are some examples of  problem solving scenario for kids.  In using scenarios, students can identify problems, talk about perspectives and come up with solutions.  There is usually not just one solution.  It is great for students to brainstorm and come up with different ways to solve problems.

Here are more problem solving scenarios for kids:

Try this fun set of problem solving scenarios with a superhero twist!

Social Skills All Year is a comprehensive set of social skills questions for the whole year.

Get ready for back-to-school with this set of back-to-school problem-solving scenarios.  

Try some of these other social problem-solving scenarios that I like:

Social and safety skill question cards

Social Skills for Teenagers

Social Skills Bundle 

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May 31, 2024

10 min read

Math Can Help Solve Social Justice Problems

Mathematicians are working on ways to use their field to tackle major social issues, such as social inequality and the need for gender equity

By Rachel Crowell & Nature magazine

MicroStockHub/Getty Images

When Carrie Diaz Eaton trained as a mathematician, they didn’t expect their career to involve social-justice research. Growing up in Providence, Rhode Island, Diaz Eaton first saw social justice in action when their father, who’s from Peru, helped other Spanish-speaking immigrants to settle in the United States.

But it would be decades before Diaz Eaton would forge a professional path to use their mathematical expertise to study social-justice issues. Eventually, after years of moving around for education and training, that journey brought them back to Providence, where they collaborated with the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council on projects focused on preserving the local environment of the river’s drainage basin, and bolstering resources for the surrounding, often underserved communities.

By “thinking like a mathematician” and leaning on data analysis, data science and visualization skills, they found that their expertise was needed in surprising ways, says Diaz Eaton, who is now executive director of the Institute for a Racially Just, Inclusive, and Open STEM Education at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine.

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For example, the council identified a need to help local people to better connect with community resources. “Even though health care and education don’t seem to fall under the purview of a watershed council, these are all interrelated issues,” Diaz Eaton says. Air pollution can contribute to asthma attacks, for example. In one project, Diaz Eaton and their collaborators built a quiz to help community members to choose the right health-care option, depending on the nature of their illness or injury, immigration status and health-insurance coverage.

“One of the things that makes us mathematicians, is our skills in logic and the questioning of assumptions”, and creating that quiz “was an example of logic at play”, requiring a logic map of cases and all of the possible branches of decision-making to make an effective quiz, they say.

Maths might seem an unlikely bedfellow for social-justice research. But applying the rigour of the field is turning out to be a promising approach for identifying, and sometimes even implementing, fruitful solutions for social problems.

Mathematicians can experience first-hand the messiness and complexity — and satisfaction — of applying maths to problems that affect people and their communities. Trying to work out how to help people access much-needed resources, reduce violence in communities or boost gender equity requires different technical skills, ways of thinking and professional collaborations compared with breaking new ground in pure maths. Even for an applied mathematician like Diaz Eaton, transitioning to working on social-justice applications brings fresh challenges.

Mathematicians say that social-justice research is difficult yet fulfilling — these projects are worth taking on because of their tremendous potential for creating real-world solutions for people and the planet.

Data-driven research

Mathematicians are digging into issues that range from social inequality and health-care access to racial profiling and predictive policing. However, the scope of their research is limited by their access to the data, says Omayra Ortega, an applied mathematician and mathematical epidemiologist at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, California. “There has to be that measured information,” Ortega says.

Fortunately, data for social issues abound. “Our society is collecting data at a ridiculous pace,” Ortega notes. Her mathematical epidemiology work has examined which factors affect vaccine uptake in different communities. Her work has found, for example, that, in five years, a national rotavirus-vaccine programme in Egypt would reduce disease burden enough that the cost saving would offset 76% of the costs of the vaccine. “Whenever we’re talking about the distribution of resources, there’s that question of social justice: who gets the resources?” she says.

Lily Khadjavi’s journey with social-justice research began with an intriguing data set.

About 15 years ago, Khadjavi, a mathematician at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, was “on the hunt for real-world data” for an undergraduate statistics class she was teaching. She wanted data that the students could crunch to “look at new information and pose their own questions”. She realized that Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) traffic-stop data fit that description.

At that time, every time that LAPD officers stopped pedestrians or pulled over drivers, they were required to report stop data. Those data included “the perceived race or ethnicity of the person they had stopped”, Khadjavi notes.

When the students analysed the data, the results were memorable. “That was the first time I heard students do a computation absolutely correctly and then audibly gasp at their results,” she says. The data showed that one in every 5 or 6 police stops of Black male drivers resulted in a vehicle search — a rate that was more than triple the national average, which was about one out of every 20 stops for drivers of any race or ethnicity, says Khadjavi.

Her decision to incorporate that policing data into her class was a pivotal moment in Khadjavi’s career — it led to a key publication and years of building expertise in using maths to study racial profiling and police practice. She sits on California’s Racial Identity and Profiling Advisory Board , which makes policy recommendations to state and local agencies on how to eliminate racial profiling in law enforcement.

In 2023, she was awarded the Association for Women in Mathematics’ inaugural Mary & Alfie Gray Award for Social Justice, named after a mathematician couple who championed human rights and equity in maths and government.

Sometimes, gaining access to data is a matter of networking. One of Khadjavi’s colleagues shared Khadjavi’s pivotal article with specialists at the American Civil Liberties Union. In turn, these specialists shared key data obtained through public-records requests with Khadjavi and her colleague. “Getting access to that data really changed what we could analyse,” Khadjavi says. “[It] allowed us to shine a light on the experiences of civilians and police in hundreds of thousands of stops made every year in Los Angeles.”

The data-intensive nature of this research can be an adjustment for some mathematicians, requiring them to develop new skills and approach problems differently. Such was the case for Tian An Wong, a mathematician at the University of Michigan-Dearborn who trained in number theory and representation theory.

In 2020, Wong wanted to know more about the controversial issue of mathematicians collaborating with the police, which involves, in many cases, using mathematical modelling and data analysis to support policing activities. Some mathematicians were protesting about the practice as part of a larger wave of protests around systemic racism , following the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Wong’s research led them to a technique called predictive policing, which Wong describes as “the use of historical crime and other data to predict where future crime will occur, and [to] allocate policing resources based on those predictions”.

Wong wanted to know whether the tactics that mathematicians use to support police work could instead be used to critique it. But first, they needed to gain some additional statistics and data analysis skills. To do so, Wong took an online introductory statistics course, re-familiarized themself with the Python programming language, and connected with colleagues trained in statistical methods. They also got used to reading research papers across several disciplines.

Currently, Wong applies those skills to investigating the policing effectiveness of a technology that automatically locates gunshots by sound. That technology has been deployed in parts of Detroit, Michigan, where community members and organizations have raised concerns about its multimillion-dollar cost and about whether such police surveillance makes a difference to public safety.

Getting the lay of the land

For some mathematicians, social-justice work is a natural extension of their career trajectories. “My choice of mathematical epidemiology was also partially born out of out of my love for social justice,” Ortega says. Mathematical epidemiologists apply maths to study disease occurrence in specific populations and how to mitigate disease spread. When Ortega’s PhD adviser mentioned that she could study the uptake of a then-new rotovirus vaccine in the mid-2000s, she was hooked.

Mathematicians, who decide to jump into studying social-justice issues anew, must do their homework and dedicate time to consider how best to collaborate with colleagues of diverse backgrounds.

Jonathan Dawes, an applied mathematician at the University of Bath, UK, investigates links between the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their associated target actions. Adopted in 2015, the SDGs are “a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity,” according to the United Nations , and each one has a number of targets.

“As a global agenda, it’s an invitation to everybody to get involved,” says Dawes. From a mathematical perspective, analysing connections in the complex system of SDGs “is a nice level of problem,” Dawes says. “You’ve got 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Between them, they have 169 targets. [That’s] an amount of data that isn’t very large in big-data terms, but just big enough that it’s quite hard to hold all of it in your head.”

Dawes’ interest in the SDGs was piqued when he read a 2015 review that focused on how making progress on individual goals could affect progress on the entire set. For instance, if progress is made on the goal to end poverty how does that affect progress on the goal to achieve quality education for all, as well as the other 15 SDGs?

“If there’s a network and you can put some numbers on the strengths and signs of the edges, then you’ve got a mathematized version of the problem,” Dawes says. Some of his results describe how the properties of the network change if one or more of the links is perturbed, much like an ecological food web. His work aims to identify hierarchies in the SDG networks, pinpointing which SDGs should be prioritized for the health of the entire system.

As Dawes dug into the SDGs, he realized that he needed to expand what he was reading to include different journals, including publications that were “written in very different ways”. That involved “trying to learn a new language”, he explains. He also kept up to date with the output of researchers and organizations doing important SDG-related work, such as the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in Laxenburg, Austria, and the Stockholm Environment Institute.

Dawes’ research showed that interactions between the SDGs mean that “there are lots of positive reinforcing effects between poverty, hunger, health care, education, gender equity and so on.” So, “it’s possible to lift all of those up” when progress is made on even one of the goals. With one exception: managing and protecting the oceans. Making progress on some of the other SDGs could, in some cases, stall progress for, or even harm, life below water.

Collaboration care

Because social-justice projects are often inherently cross-disciplinary, mathematicians studying social justice say it’s key in those cases to work with community leaders, activists or community members affected by the issues.

Getting acquainted with these stakeholders might not always feel comfortable or natural. For instance, when Dawes started his SDG research, he realized that he was entering a field in which researchers already knew each other, followed each other’s work and had decades of experience. “There’s a sense of being like an uninvited guest at a party,” Dawes says. He became more comfortable after talking with other researchers, who showed a genuine interest in what he brought to the discussion, and when his work was accepted by the field’s journals. Over time, he realized “the interdisciplinary space was big enough for all of us to contribute to”.

Even when mathematicians have been invited to join a team of social-justice researchers, they still must take care, because first impressions can set the tone.

Michael Small is an applied mathematician and director of the Data Institute at the University of Western Australia in Perth. For much of his career, Small focused on the behaviour of complex systems, or those with many simple interacting parts, and dynamical systems theory, which addresses physical and mechanical problems.

But when a former vice-chancellor at the university asked him whether he would meet with a group of psychiatrists and psychologists to discuss their research on mental health and suicide in young people, it transformed his research. After considering the potential social impact of better understanding the causes and risks of suicide in teenagers and younger children, and thinking about how the problem meshed well with his research in complex systems and ‘non-linear dynamics’, Small agreed to collaborate with the group.

The project has required Small to see beyond the numbers. For the children’s families, the young people are much more than a single data point. “If I go into the room [of mental-health professionals] just talking about mathematics, mathematics, mathematics, and how this is good because we can prove this really cool theorem, then I’m sure I will get push back,” he says. Instead, he notes, it’s important to be open to insights and potential solutions from other fields. Listening before talking can go a long way.

Small’s collaborative mindset has led him to other mental-health projects, such as the Transforming Indigenous Mental Health and Wellbeing project to establish culturally sensitive mental-health support for Indigenous Australians.

Career considerations

Mathematicians who engage in social-justice projects say that helping to create real-world change can be tremendously gratifying. Small wants “to work on problems that I think can do good” in the world. Spending time pursuing them “makes sense both as a technical challenge [and] as a social choice”, he says.

However, pursuing this line of maths research is not without career hurdles. “It can be very difficult to get [these kinds of] results published,” Small says. Although his university supports, and encourages, his mental-health research, most of his publications are related to his standard mathematics research. As such, he sees “a need for balance” between the two lines of research, because a paucity of publications can be a career deal breaker.

Diaz Eaton says that mathematicians pursuing social-justice research could experience varying degrees of support from their universities. “I’ve seen places where the work is supported, but it doesn’t count for tenure [or] it won’t help you on the job market,” they say.

Finding out whether social-justice research will be supported “is about having some really open and transparent conversations. Are the people who are going to write your recommendation letters going to see that work as scholarship?” Diaz Eaton notes.

All things considered, mathematicians should not feel daunted by wading into solving the world’s messy problems, Khadjavi says: “I would like people to follow their passions. It’s okay to start small.”

This article is reproduced with permission and was first published on May 22, 2024 .

• mental health

Loneliness and social isolation: What to know and how to help promote social connection

Loneliness and social isolation can lead to a number of negative mental and physical health problems, according to research.

CHICAGO -- Social isolation and loneliness are widespread problems in the U.S., posing a serious threat to our mental and physical health, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Last year, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy declared loneliness and isolation an epidemic and its health impacts have been compared to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.

According to data from the CDC , about 1 in 3 adults in the U.S. report feeling lonely and about 1 in 4 U.S. adults report not having social and emotional support.

Loneliness and social isolation can lead to a number of negative mental and physical health problems, according to research, and doctors say it's important to discuss this topic in routine health visits and when managing chronic diseases.

Risks of Loneliness and Social Isolation:

• Increases risk of premature death from all causes
• Social isolation associated with about a 50% increased risk of dementia
• Social isolation associated with a 29% increased risk of heart disease and a 32% increased risk of stroke
• Loneliness associated with higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide
• Loneliness among heart failure patients was associated with a nearly 4 times increased risk of death, 68% increased risk of hospitalization, and 57% increased risk of emergency department visit

Individual Risk Factors:

• Having a mental or physical challenge, such as a: chronic disease or condition, psychiatric or depressive condition, long-term disability
• Being marginalized or discriminated against
• Having limited or no access to resources, such as: living in rural areas, limited transportation, language barriers
• Being a victim of violence or abuse
• Facing a divorce, unemployment, or the loss of a loved one

Group Risk Factors:

Loneliness may impact some groups more than others, including:

• Low-income adults
• Young adults
• Older adults
• Adults living alone
• People who identify as LGBTQ+

How to promote social connection

There are plenty of ways to improve social connectedness. According to the CDC, small acts can make a big difference.

We can do simple things like reaching out and checking on one another. There is power in a simple check-in with a friend to let them know you're thinking about them. Even though no official guidelines exist, here is a list of some suggestions.

Commit to Connect is an initiative launched by the U.S. Administration for Community Living to fight social isolation and loneliness by helping people connect and engage to build the social connections they need to thrive.

The AARP Foundation's Connect2Affect invites anyone who may be impacted by social isolation to take a 3-minute assessment to better understand their risk level. At the end of the assessment, helpful information and local recommendations will be provided based on your results.

Local groups and nonprofit organizations are also getting involved in creating environments that foster social connections. Additionally, nursing homes and assisted living communities, grocery stores, doctors' offices and community groups can foster community connectedness.

If you are experiencing suicidal, substance use or other mental health crises please call or text the new three digit code at 988. You will reach a trained crisis counselor for free, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also goto 988lifeline.org.

ABC News contributed to this report.

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Problem Solving the Thinking Blocks® Way!

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Advanced AI-Based Techniques Scale-up Solving Complex Combinatorial Optimization Problems

• Ioana Patringenaru - [email protected]

Published Date

Share this:, article content.

A framework based on advanced AI techniques can solve complex, computationally intensive problems faster and in a more more scalable way than state-of-the-art methods, according to a study led by engineers at the University of California San Diego. 

In the paper, which was published May 30 in Nature Machine Intelligence , researchers present HypOp, a framework that uses unsupervised learning and hypergraph neural networks. The framework is able to solve combinatorial optimization problems significantly faster than existing methods. HypOp is also able to solve certain combinatorial problems that can’t be solved as effectively by prior methods. 

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“In this paper, we tackle the difficult task of addressing combinatorial optimization problems that are paramount in many fields of science and engineering,” said Nasimeh Heydaribeni, the paper’s corresponding author and a postdoctoral scholar in the UC San Diego Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. She is part of the research group of Professor Farinaz Koushanfar, who co-directs the Center for Machine-Intelligence, Computing and Security at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering. Professor Tina Eliassi-Rad from Northeastern University also collaborated with the UC San Diego team on this project.

One example of a relatively simple combinatorial problem is figuring out how many and what kind of goods to stock at specific warehouses in order to consume the least amount of gas when delivering these goods. 

HypOp can be applied to a broad spectrum of challenging real-world problems, with applications in drug discovery, chip design, logic verification, logistics and more. These are all combinatorial problems with a wide range of variables and constraints that make them extremely difficult to solve. That is because in these problems, the size of the underlying search space for finding potential solutions increases exponentially rather than in a linear fashion with respect to the problem size. 

HypOp can solve these complex problems in a more scalable manner by using a new distributed algorithm that allows multiple computation units on the hypergraph to solve the problem together, in parallel, more efficiently. 

HypOp introduces new problem embedding leveraging hypergraph neural networks, which have higher order connections than traditional graph neural networks, to better model the problem constraints and solve them more proficiently. HypOp also can transfer learning from one problem to help solve other, seemingly different problems more effectively. HypOp includes an additional fine-tuning step, which leads to finding more accurate solutions than the prior existing methods. 

This research was funded in part by the Department of Defense and Army Research Office funded MURI AutoCombat project and the NSF-funded TILOS AI Institute. 

Below we asked the UC San Diego research team on this paper to break down the findings for a broader audience though a short Q&A. 

You note in the press release that HypOp also transfer learns from one type of problem objective to help solve other cost functions more effectively. For a non-technical expert, is there more to say about this phenomenon that is relevant for the larger conversation about how AI is empowering researchers to solve problems and make discoveries that would otherwise be impossible? 

HypOp's ability to transfer-learn from one problem to assist in solving others is a prime example of how AI can introduce a paradigm shift in research and discovery. This capability, known as transfer learning, allows AI systems to consign knowledge gained from solving one problem to new but related problems with a different cost function, making them more versatile and efficient. For non-technical experts, consider how human expertise works. For instance, learning piano creates a comprehensive musical foundation that makes learning guitar faster and more effective. The transferable skills include music theory knowledge, reading proficiency, rhythmic understanding, finger dexterity, and aural abilities. These skills collectively enhance the learning experience and lead to quicker and better mastery of the guitar for someone who already knows how to play the piano. In comparison, a novice music student would have a much longer learning curve.  

This synergy between human intelligence and AI amplifies researchers’ ability to address complex, interdisciplinary challenges and drive progress in ways that were previously unimaginable. That is one reason why we are very excited about HypOp’s advancements and contributions. 

There is a lot of conversation in many different circles about using machine learning and artificial intelligence to help researchers make discoveries faster, or even to make discoveries that would otherwise be impossible. For people who may not understand all the technical details of your new paper, how influential do you believe this new approach, HypOp, will be in terms of how AI is used in problem solving and research? 

The overarching concept is that learning the pertinent problem structure can greatly enhance the quality and speed of combinatorial optimization problems. HypOp’s particular methodology holds a significant potential for influencing the way AI is applied in problem solving and research. By leveraging hypergraph neural networks (HyperGNNs), HypOp extends the capabilities of traditional graph neural networks to scalably tackle higher-order constrained combinatorial optimization problems. This advancement is crucial because many real-world problems involve complex constraints and interactions that go beyond simple pairwise relationships that have been suggested earlier. 

The code for HypOp is available online. Do you expect people will start using the code right away to solve combinatorial optimization problems? Or is there more work to be done before people can start using the code? 

Yes, people can start using the HypOp open-source code right away to solve large-scale combinatorial optimization problems. 

What problems is HypOp able to solve that other methods can’t tackle?

HypOp can solve large-scale optimization problems with generic objective functions and constraints. Most of the existing solvers can only solve problems with specific objective functions such as linear or quadratic functions and can only model pairwise constraints. Moreover, HypOp leverages distributed training techniques which enables it to scale to substantial problem instances. 

What are the next steps in terms of research for HypOp?

We are focused on extending the generalizability and scalability of HypOp. We are doing so by designing other advanced AI techniques that are capable of learning from addressing smaller problem instances and generalizing to larger problem cases.

Distributed Constrained Combinatorial Op timization Leveraging Hyp ergraph Neural Networks

Nasimeh Heydaribeni, Xinrui Zhan, Ruisi Zhang and Farinaz Koushanfar, UC San Diego Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Tina Eliassi-Rad, Khoury College of Computer Sciences, Northeastern University

The code for HypOp is available here .  

Learn more about research and education at UC San Diego in: Artificial Intelligence

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The Social Security Fix Nobody Wants to Talk About

A small tax increase would make the essential national retirement program secure for decades, our columnist says, but lawmakers would have to take action.

By Jeff Sommer

Jeff Sommer writes Strategies , a weekly column on markets, finance and the economy.

Millions of Americans worry about Social Security — whether they will get the full retirement paychecks promised to them in years to come. And many younger people believe — incorrectly, in my view — that by the time they are ready to retire, Social Security will no longer be there for them.

The issue is deemed so thorny in Washington that most politicians dance gingerly around it. The latest annual Social Security Trust Funds report in May said that unless action was taken, benefit cuts of roughly 20 percent would have to start in 2033.

Yet when you stop and really look at the problem, it turns out that what’s required for fixing Social Security is no big deal.

This isn’t a bold claim. It’s based on hard numbers calculated by Alicia Munnell , a Boston College economics professor who is among the nation’s premier experts on Social Security.

An increase in the 12.4 percent Social Security payroll tax of 3.5 percentage points — half borne by employers and half by employees — is all that’s needed to keep full Social Security benefits flowing in the 2030s and beyond, Professor Munnell explained in a telephone conversation.

She also stressed that even if Congress did nothing at all to fix Social Security, you would still get most of your promised benefits. That’s because most of the money financing Social Security checks comes from the payroll taxes being paid regularly by working people. Income from the system’s trust funds, which are dwindling, supplements it. Enough money will be going into the system from taxes to pay about 80 percent of benefits even if the trust funds run down to zero. But Professor Munnell doesn’t expect that to happen.

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Social Story: We Can Be Problem Solvers

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