Target Selection and Task Analysis:

In what contexts does the student need to display this skill, now and in the future?

Simply, the student will need this skill in all of his interactions in various community and employment settings.

What are the steps that comprise this skill? 

Underlying the steps of responding to a comment or compliment are cognitive and emotional processes that deserve consideration.

A crucial issue is the shift of personal attention to the comment. Shifting attention is a challenge for many individuals.  While working or focusing, does the student pay attention to his surroundings and to the activities of others or does he ‘screen them out’? In group working conditions, the expectation is to do your job. However, you must pay attention at some level to the actions of key co-workers and your supervisor. If the supervisor walks into the business mailroom where two people are sorting mail, each of the two generally look up to determine if the supervisor is passing through or if he ‘looks like’ he has something to say. This is the skill of social attribution.  At the core of this skill is the ability to recognize that someone is talking to you. You process the verbal information but that is not all that you process. You process the details of someone looking in your direction, or the gestures he uses, or the words he is saying and the materials that may be important. Attribution is picking out the relevant details of the context to determine meaning. Targeting this skill of identifying the relevant details may be the crucial point of intervention for some students. This involves both verbal processing and the processing of non-verbal cues and concrete events and surroundings.

For some, receiving a compliment is embarrassing or unnerving. The anxiety or agitation that results can affect the response. The individual may be agitated that someone is calling attention to him. They might also misunderstand the purpose of the compliment because, in their mind, it is a given fact. Practicing and using coping strategies to both appear calm and to remain calm may be a focus of instruction.
The instructor needs to determine if either or both of these processes are relevant to the student when processing and receiving a compliment or comment.

1. Determine if the student understands the concepts of comments or compliments. If he understands and can label the concepts in practice, then define what concrete strategies the student can use to shift focus to a comment and to the actions and non-verbal cues of a speaker. The student may need repeated practice in identifying key verbal and non-verbal cues that are relevant to commenting and compliments. Learning to see these non-verbal cues as a part of the comment or compliment is one key.
2. If the student is unsure of the key details or does not quickly process (or attend to) what is said or, in any sense, is confused, the student needs ‘repair strategies’ to determine the relevant details. Identify if the student needs repair strategies such as “I am sorry. Were you talking to me? Could you say that again?” or “I did not understand.”
3. If the student is agitated or embarrassed by the compliment or comment, he may need a self-calming strategy. He may need to practice in formulating a response without significant signs of agitation. The response may be as simple as a nod and a smile of agreement with the comment. It may be as simple as an acknowledgement of the compliment: “That is nice of you to say.” The simple recognition and acknowledgement is a positive response that can be practiced and developed. What words will the student say to ‘appear’ appreciative or accepting even when he is embarrassed or indignant? Think about what non-verbal cues he will use in his response and what he will do to relax and regulate his own agitation.
4. This step involves the more complex behavior of responding to a comment with an expression of related personal experience. With the compliment, it is potentially quite similar: can the student comment on the compliment or on the situation related to the compliment?

What sub-skill should you target first for the student to initiate? Given what the student can do presently, how will you present the task so that the student can perform steps within his capacity while learning a new step? 

Ask yourself whether the individual needs instruction and practice in understanding the definition of a compliment and recognizing the verbal information of a comment or compliment. Second, ask yourself if the core issue is the need for practice in recognizing the physical surroundings and the non-verbal cues of those around him. Oftentimes, practicing shifting attention and awareness in order to process a comment or a compliment while looking for specific cues, is a skill that can be improved by shaping and repetition.

Identifying the ‘repair strategy’ that the student will use requires negotiation (priming) to determine the words or approach that fit the student’s understanding. The repair strategy will probably be necessary while improving the student’s ability to attend to both verbal and non-verbal information.

For some, processing and understanding are not the major issue. The issue may be responding with the non-verbal and verbal behaviors of recognition and appreciation (the nod, the smile, the simple ‘thanks’).
Is the student able to practice making a related comment? This more sophisticated skill of connecting one’s own experience to the comment or compliment may be your primary target.
In contrast, certain students need a stronger focus immediately on self-regulation, on taking a deep breath and using self-calming statements to prevent a negative response.