PEERS®

PEERS®- Social skills group for adolescents

What is PEERS®?

PEERS® for Adolescents is a 14 to 16-week evidence-based social skills intervention for motivated teens in middle and high school who are interested in learning new ways of making and keeping friends. This internationally acclaimed program, used in over 35 countries, was originally developed at UCLA by Dr. Elizabeth Laugeson.

Who Can Participate

PEERS® may be appropriate for teens with Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, Anxiety, Depression or other social and behavioral disorders. The best candidates for this program are middle and high-schoolers who are interested in enhancing their social skills and relationships. Parent participation is required.

Session Expectation

During each group session, teens are taught important social skills and are given the opportunity to practice these skills in session during socialization activities.

Teens will learn how to:

• Use appropriate conversational skills

• Use humor appropriately

• Use electronic communication

• Enter & exit conversations

• Be a good host during get-togethers

• Be a good sport

• Handle arguments and disagreements

• Change a bad reputation

• Handle rumors and gossip

• Handle rejection, teasing and bullying

Parent Involvement

Parents involvement is critical in this training. Parents attend separate sessions and are taught how to assist their teens in making and keeping friends by helping to expand their teen’s social network and providing feedback through coaching during weekly socialization homework assignments.

FAQs

Does my child need to have an ASD diagnosis? NO! PEERS® is a separate program from our ABA services, therefore no ASD diagnosis is required.

Can my child participate in ABA & PEERS®? YES! Your child can participate in both. They will not occur at the same time and act as two completely different programs.

Where is PEERS® located? Currently, PEERS® is only offered via Telehealth due to Complete Connections not yet having a clinic. Once a clinic is established, we will offer in person AND Telehealth options.

Do I need to be located in the Upstate of SC? NO! Since PEERS® is offered via Telehealth, you can be located anywhere to participate.

Will my insurance cover PEERS®? PEERS® is currently only offered as a self-pay program. In the future we would love to work with your insurance to access this program, but currently it is self-pay only.

How much does PEERS® cost? PEERS® is a total of $1,500 for the course. We understand that this is a large amount of money so we do offer payment plans and are willing to work with you.