Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Stress Reduction among Primary Education Pupils in Nigeria

The stress level of pupils in primary schools is increasing at a worrying rate. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for stress reduction among primary of education pupils in Nigeria. The research design used in the study was a pretest/post-test and no-treatment control group. The participants of the study were 96 pupils who had experienced a high level of stress. The participants were assigned either to treatment group (n = 48) or no-treatment group (n = 48). The Educational Stress Scale for Pupils was the measure used for data collection in the study, while repeated measures analysis of variance was used for data analysis. After the intervention, the results indicated a significant reduction in the stress level of the pupils in the treatment group when compared to those in the no-treatment control group, F(1, 95) = 471.67, p >.001, \(\eta_{p}^{2}\) = .834]. Further significant reduction was observed in the stress level of the pupils in the treatment group when compared to those in the no-treatment control group after follow-up assessment; F(1,102) = 493.94, p > .001, \(\eta_{p}^{2}\) = .840]. Cognitive behavior therapy was significantly effective for stress reduction among pupils in primary education institutions. Therefore, counsellors, early childhood teachers, health-care practitioners and social workers may wish to use CBT principles to help pupils reduce stresses.