An evaluation of the FRIENDS programme: a cognitive behaviour therapy intervention to promote emotional resilience
P Stallard1, N Simpson, S Anderson
1University of Bath, Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Care Partnership NHS Trust, Department of Child and Family Psychiatry, Royal United Hospital, Combe Park, Bath BA1 3NG, UK. paul.stallard@awp.nhs.uk
Aims:
To evaluate the efficacy and acceptability of the FRIENDS programme.
Methods:
Uncontrolled before and after assessment of the FRIENDS programme, a 10 session cognitive behaviour therapy programme. A total of 213 children aged 9-10 years from six primary schools were studied.
Main Outcome Measures:
Spence Children's Anxiety Scale, Culture Free Self-Esteem Questionnaire, qualitative assessment of acceptability.
Results:
End of programme data from 197 children (92.5% of eligible sample) showed significantly lower rates of anxiety (t = 2.95, df = 384) and significantly improved levels of self-esteem (t = 3.13, df = 386). Significant improvements were obtained in over half of those children with the most severe emotional problems. A total of 190 children (89.2%) completed a qualitative assessment of acceptability: 154 (81%) thought it was fun, 147 (77.4%) would recommend it to a friend; 137 (72.8%) thought they had learned new skills, and 78 (41.1%) had helped someone else with their new skills.
Conclusions:
The FRIENDS programme appears to be an efficacious and acceptable way to promote emotional resilience (reduced anxiety and increased self-esteem) in primary school aged children, consistent with previous studies in Australia. Further controlled studies are needed to assess natural history of anxiety and self-esteem and whether benefits are maintained over time.
More Related Videos
05:48The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients
Published on: June 12, 2020
12:55Multimodal Protocol for Assessing Metacognition and Self-Regulation in Adults with Learning Difficulties
Published on: September 27, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Lazarus's Cognitive Appraisal Theory
Primary Appraisal:...
Coping Strategies: Emotion Focused
Cognitive Therapy
Beck's Cognitive Therapy
Arbitrary Inference
Arbitrary inference involves making conclusions without sufficient...
Self-Evaluation Maintenance Model
Friendships and Close Friendships
