Impact of MindUP Among Young Children: Improvements in Behavioral Problems, Adaptive Skills, and Executive Functioning
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Impact of MindUP Among Young Children: Improvements in Behavioral Problems, Adaptive Skills, and Executive Functioning Claire V. Crooks 1
&
Karen Bax 2 & Andrea Delaney 1 & Haesoo Kim 1 & Mostafa Shokoohi 3
# The Author(s) 2020
Abstract Objectives We evaluated the impacts of a mindfulness-based social and emotional learning (SEL) program on behavioral problems, adaptive skills, and executive functioning among kindergarten students. Methods A total of 23 classrooms were assigned to the intervention group, in which the teachers implemented MindUP, and 19 classrooms were assigned to the comparison group, in which the teachers delivered their classes as usual. Teachers assessed the behavior of students (N = 584; intervention n = 261; comparison n = 323) both pre- and post-intervention with two measures: the Behavior Assessment System for Children, Third Edition, Teacher Rating Scales (BASC-3 TRS) and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Preschool and Child Version (BRIEF-P; BRIEF-2). Results Students who received the intervention demonstrated an improvement in adaptive skills and reduction in behavioral symptoms, internalizing composite, and externalizing composite outcomes. Additionally, there was a significant decrease in executive functioning deficits among students who participated in MindUP. There were no gender differences regarding changes in any of the five study outcomes. Conclusions The study suggests that mindfulness-based SEL intervention can improve psychosocial and behavioral outcomes in young children. Keywords Social and emotional learning . Mindfulness . Schools . Early childhood . Executive function
Schools are increasingly embracing social and emotional programs as an essential part of education (Domitrovich et al. 2017; Greenberg et al. 2017). At the same time, the development of mindfulness-based programming directed at improving child well-being has been increasing in popularity as an educational initiative (Semple et al. 2017). Although these approaches are distinct, they share commonalities and can be seen as highly complementary (Feuerborn and Gueldner 2019). There are a number of school-based programs that
* Claire V. Crooks [email protected] 1
Centre for School Mental Health, Western University, London, ON, Canada
2
Mary J Wright Research and Education Centre, Western University, London, ON, Canada
3
Division of Social and Behavioural Health Sciences, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
incorporate mindfulness within a social and emotional learning (SEL) framework, and a growing interest in these approaches to student well-being that may not only be complementary, but have added value (Moreno-Gómez and Cejudo 2019; Schonert-Reichl et al. 2015). Below, we provide a brief overview of SEL programming and mindfulness-based approaches used within schools and then discuss these two complementary approaches as background for this research. Over the past nearly two decades, there has been a growing recognition that to
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