Introduction
Existing Evidence Regarding the Relationship Between Social-Emotional Skills and Peer Relationship Outcomes of Intervention Programs
Implementation Factors
A Novel Social-Emotional Learning Program and its Intervention Effect Model
Current Study
Methods
The Program “You, Me and the Little Monsters”
Session | Target competencies | Description of the session | Methods used during the session |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Emotion vocabulary, recognising emotions in oneself and others | The metaphor of emotion-monsters is used to externalise emotions, increase emotion-vocabulary and discuss where and how we feel our emotions. Students draw their personal “happy monster” and “anger monster”. | Group discussion of monster cartoon prompts, drawing exercise, games, workbook exercise |
2 | Rating the intensity of emotions, emotion regulation | With the metaphor of small, medium, big and huge emotion-monsters, students learn to rate the intensity of their emotions. Emotion regulation strategies are introduced as ways to shrink monsters. In Joe’s story, emotion regulation strategies are discussed. | Group discussion & poster activity, workbook exercise, mindfulness, story |
3 | Classroom rules, empathy and perspective taking | Students decide on their own classroom rules to feel welcome and safe in their class. Joe’s story highlights the importance of prosocial behavior in class and serves as example to reflect on others’ feelings, thereby practicing empathy and perspective taking. | Group dynamic games, group discussion & post-it brainstorming, story |
4 | Empathy, interpersonal emotion regulation | The classroom rules are applied in stories with specific examples to practice prosocial behaviors. Empathy and strategies to support classmates are practiced. | Cooperation game, group reflection, story, individual reflection |
5 | Communication skills, conflict resolution | Students learn to rate problems and decide whether they are (i) minor and will resolve themselves, (ii) medium and need addressing, or (iii) big and require adult help. In Ana’s story, communication is introduced as first and most important step to resolve conflicts. | Circle time to reflect on class community, games, story, partner activity, mindfulness |
6 | Conflict resolution strategies | In specific scenarios, students try to take different characters’ perspectives. Conflict resolution strategies are introduced and discussed in Ana’s story. | Circle time, partner activity, workbook exercise, story |
7 | Bullying, bystander-effect, support strategies | Students learn to treat bullying as a big problem that requires help to solve. The bystander-effect is discussed to encourage all students to support each other when witnessing bullying behavior. | Circle time, workbook exercise, story |
8 | Recap of emotion regulation, prosocial behavior strategies, conflict resolution | Through a story about the “anger-monster” that is passed on from student to student, children recap learned strategies to regulate their emotions, support each other and resolve conflicts. | Circle time, workbook exercise, story, reflection |
Study Design
Participants
Control group | Intervention group | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Count | Percentage | Count | Percentage | ||
Participants | N | 281 | 59% | 195 | 40.9% |
Age (years) | 9 | 1 | 0.3% | 1 | 0.5% |
10 | 175 | 66.3% | 148 | 82.2% | |
11 | 82 | 31.1% | 29 | 16.1% | |
12 | 6 | 2.3% | 2 | 1% | |
n/a | 17 | 15 | |||
Gender | girl | 133 | 50.4% | 88 | 48.9% |
boy | 131 | 49.6% | 92 | 51.1% | |
n/a | 17 | 15 | |||
School Type | grammar school | 104 | 37.1% | 170 | 87.2% |
comprehensive school | 177 | 62.9% | 25 | 12.8% | |
School Setting | rural | 96 | 34.2% | 94 | 48.2% |
urban | 185 | 65.8% | 101 | 51.8% |
Measures
Happiness
Peer connectedness
Social-emotional skills
Student and Teacher Generated Classroom Climate
Fidelity Strategy
Statistical Analysis
Results
Fidelity to the Planned Intervention
Main Intervention Effect Models
Social-emotional skills
Outcome variable | Time | Group | M | SE |
---|---|---|---|---|
Social Skills | Pre | control | 13.68 | 0.14 |
intervention | 13.77 | 0.17 | ||
Post | control | 13.65 | 0.16 | |
intervention | 13.86 | 0.17 | ||
Follow-up | control | 13.46 | 0.18 | |
intervention | 14.15 | 0.18 | ||
Classroom Climate Student | Pre | control | 26.51 | 0.32 |
intervention | 27.75 | 0.37 | ||
Post | control | 25.89 | 0.37 | |
intervention | 26.53 | 0.40 | ||
Follow-up | control | 25.34 | 0.37 | |
intervention | 26.34 | 0.44 | ||
Classroom Climate Teacher | Pre | control | 31.86 | 0.26 |
intervention | 32.12 | 0.24 | ||
Post | control | 31.77 | 0.32 | |
intervention | 32.08 | 0.28 | ||
Follow-up | control | 31.49 | 0.32 | |
intervention | 32.56 | 0.26 | ||
Peer Connectedness | Pre | control | 16.24 | 0.18 |
intervention | 15.92 | 0.22 | ||
Post | control | 16.36 | 0.21 | |
intervention | 16.14 | 0.24 | ||
Follow-up | control | 16.09 | 0.21 | |
intervention | 16.52 | 0.26 | ||
Happiness | Pre | control | 16.13 | 0.19 |
intervention | 16.56 | 0.20 | ||
Post | control | 16.06 | 0.22 | |
intervention | 16.29 | 0.23 | ||
Follow-up | control | 15.56 | 0.23 | |
intervention | 16.50 | 0.25 |
Classroom climate generated by students
Outcome Variable | Multilevel Linear Model | T1-T2 | T2-T3 | T1-T3 | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Predictor Variable | df num | def denom | F | p | η²p | df num | def denom | F | p | η²p | df num | def denom | F | p | η²p | |
Social Skills | main effect time | 1 | 405.83 | 0.024 | 0.877 | 1 | 365.58 | 0.084 | 0.772 | 1 | 393.364 | 0.553 | 0.458 | |||
main effect group | 1 | 22.14 | 0.251 | 0.621 | 1 | 21.13 | 1.514 | 0.232 | 1 | 23.267 | 1.697 | 0.205 | ||||
interaction time x group | 1 | 405.83 | 0.429 | 0.512 | 1 | 365.58 | 6.829 | 0.009* | 0.018 | 1 | 393.364 | 6.390 | 0.012* | 0.015 | ||
Classroom Climate Student | main effect time | 1 | 409.22 | 20.982 | <0.001** | 0.051 | 1 | 374.56 | 0.670 | 0.413 | 1 | 412.232 | 20.296 | <0.001** | 0.046 | |
main effect group | 1 | 21.40 | 0.838 | 0.370 | 1 | 20.09 | 0.506 | 0.485 | 1 | 21.470 | 1.260 | 0.274 | ||||
interaction time x group | 1 | 409.22 | 2.132 | 0.145 | 1 | 374.56 | 0.483 | 0.487 | 1 | 412.232 | 0.309 | 0.579 | ||||
Classroom Climate Teacher | main effect time | 1 | 418.51 | 0.051 | 0.822 | 1 | 380.90 | 0.005 | 0.945 | 1 | 398.859 | 0.038 | 0.845 | |||
main effect group | 1 | 19.59 | 0.338 | 0.567 | 1 | 18.78 | 1.109 | 0.305 | 1 | 18.831 | 2.118 | 0.162 | ||||
interaction time x group | 1 | 418.51 | 0.008 | 0.928 | 1 | 380.90 | 3.392 | 0.066 | 1 | 398.859 | 3.158 | 0.076 | ||||
Peer Connectedness | main effect time | 1 | 405.48 | 0.181 | 0.670 | 1 | 367.57 | 0.004 | 0.948 | 1 | 406.941 | 0.889 | 0.346 | |||
main effect group | 1 | 21.19 | 0.612 | 0.442 | 1 | 21.07 | 0.000 | 0.984 | 1 | 22.278 | 0.000 | 0.985 | ||||
interaction time x group | 1 | 405.48 | 0.122 | 0.726 | 1 | 367.57 | 3.573 | 0.059 | 1 | 406.941 | 4.576 | 0.033* | 0.011 | |||
Happiness | main effect time | 1 | 400.23 | 2.569 | 0.109 | 1 | 371.38 | 0.165 | 0.684 | 1 | 393.365 | 6.242 | 0.013* | 0.016 | ||
main effect group | 1 | 20.14 | 0.892 | 0.356 | 1 | 20.13 | 1.174 | 0.291 | 1 | 20.412 | 3.109 | 0.093 | ||||
interaction time x group | 1 | 400.23 | 0.740 | 0.390 | 1 | 371.38 | 7.400 | 0.007* | 0.019 | 1 | 393.365 | 3.124 | 0.078 |