Social Skills

Families By Design helps individuals who have difficulty relating to others. We teach people, who may or may not have emotional problems, about the verbal and nonverbal behaviors involved in social interactions.

There are many people who have never been taught such interpersonal skills as making "small talk" in social settings, or the importance of good eye contact during a conversation. In addition, many people have not learned to "read" the many subtle cues contained in social interactions, such as how to tell when someone wants to change the topic of conversation or shift to another activity. Families By Design trains patients to learn to interpret these and other social signals, so they can determine how to act appropriately in the company of other people in a variety of situations.

Families By Design believes that when people improve their social skills or change selected behaviors, they will raise their self-esteem and increase the likelihood that others will respond favorably to them.