Promoting health and wellbeing in schoolchildren: Improvement of social relationships and reduction of chronic stress

LOZADA, MARIANA; D'ADAMO, PAOLA; CARRO, NATALIA

Montreal

Congreso; Fifth World Congress on Positive Psychology; 2017

International Positive Psychology Association

Objective: To assess whether the implementation of mindfulness-based practices and cooperative activities can reduce chronic stress in 7-8 year-old children. Study design: We conducted a nine month intervention (long term intervention, LTI) following a controlled waitlist design, with two measurement time points set before and immediately after this program. At each time point, salivary cortisol levels were sampled in the group who participated in the intervention and also the waitlist group. Moreover, variation in cortisol levels pre and post LTI was compared with variation in cortisol levels before and after a shorter 3 month intervention (STI). Both interventions were carried out in the same school, with the same age group and the same teacher, and sought to promote empathic concern and cooperation through mindfulness-based practices and cooperative activities.Results: Cortisol levels significantly decreased after the LTI, while no significant differences were observed in the waitlist group. When comparing the variation of cortisol levels before and immediately after the STI, although differences were found, they were not statistically significant. A greater improvement in social relationships between peers was observed after the LTI than after the STI. Conclusions: The benefits of this practical nine month intervention, which reduced chronic stress and favored social interactions, make it an interesting proposal for working on prevention and health in childhood.