Examining the effectiveness of sexual abuse prevention curriculum based on cognitive processapproach

The purpose of this study is to determine whether curriculum of preventing sexual abuse that is based on cognitive process approach is effective in developing the skill of preventing sexual abuse for people with mental disabilities and in making them generalize this skill. The participants of the research are three female inclusive students at an elementary school who are low mentally disabled and meet the prerequisite skills of the research. Multiple probe model with probe conditions across subject method which is one of the single subject research methods was used for determining the efficacy of preventing sexual abuse social skill instruction. The curriculum of preventing sexual abuse skill was prepared by basing on the steps of cognitive process: social coding, social decision, social performance and social evaluation. In the instruction of preventing sexual abuse skill, the stories and the pictures depicting these stories were used. It was instructed that the abuse would be prevented in three steps: saying "no", "leaving the stage" and "telling the event to someone he/she trusts." That was completed in four stages: application beginning level, instruction, examination and generalization. Data of the research were obtained by data collection tools. At the end of the research, it has been found that the curriculum which was prepared by basing on cognitive process approach was effective in developing the skill of preventing sexual abuse for all participants and in generalization of this skill.