Happiness And Resilience Lessons For Children

Submitted by tonyplant on July 9, 2006 - 08:58.

Following the disastrous report into the state of children's and adolescents' mental health I was wondering about the only possible mechanism for delivering appropriate interventions for children who need them.

So, I'm pleased to see that the Independent on Sunday carries a story about Prof. Marty Seligman being invited over to the UK to train teachers in delivering happiness and resilience lessons to children. It's an exciting prospect. It is more than a little interesting that the reporter has made the usual mistake of referring to Seligman as the "guru of positive thinking" as if it is a synonym for positive psychology and as if Prof. Seligman has accepts the annointment as "guru".

I think that this is an excellent innovation (particularly because it seems as if parents will be allowed to participate) but it is not clear that this is meant to address the needs of children identified in the BMA report as in need of treatment. Apparently, the "anti-depression classes" have been approved by Lord Layard. Now, the classes are either happiness and resilience classes or they are anti-depression: it is hard to imagine that they are synonymous. This is very sloppy reporting.

The move comes as experts warn that record numbers of young people are on the verge of mental breakdown as a result of family break-up, exam pressures and growing inability to cope with the pressures of modern life. Figures show that at least 10 per cent - three children in every average-sized class of 30 in the country - are experiencing symptoms of severe depression, including suicidal thoughts, prolonged bouts of despair and the urge to cry on a daily basis.

Irritatingly, the IoS's third article then styles the lessons as optimism lessons. Yes, there are overlaps but be consistent. It is ludicrous that there are three articles but it is still not clear what the lessons are and whether they are offered to all pupils as a means of developing resilience (probable) or considered to be sufficient for the children identified as having severe mental health problems. If it is the latter, it would have been helpful if the articles had mentioned the involvement of family doctors or any psychologists or psychiatrists who are already involved in the family.

Nonetheless, it is a fascinating project and I look forward to the evaluation and results.

Update on this item. I emailed Prof. Seligman and, as I suspected, the programme in question is the Penn Resilience Program (PRP): this has been researched and evaluated for more than 12 years. PRP is:

a manual-based intervention comprised of twelve 90-minute group sessions. The curriculum teaches cognitive-behavioral and social problem-solving skills and is based in part on cognitive-behavioral theories of depression by Aaron T. Beck, Albert Ellis and Martin Seligman. Students are encouraged to identify and challenge negative beliefs, use evidence to make more accurate appraisals of situations and events, and to use effective coping mechanisms when faced with adversity. In addition to the cognitive-behavioral component, students learn techniques for assertiveness, negotiation, decision-making, and relaxation.

The researchers report that in the initial evaluation of PRP, pupils

who were identified as being at risk for depression were assigned to either the PRP intervention condition, or a usual-care condition. After two years, the students in the PRP condition were half as likely as students in the usual-care condition to report moderate to severe levels of depressive symptoms.

This does sound as if it will be helpful for those students who are at risk - I am waiting for clarification of whether or not something more is on offer for the children who are already have a mental health problem that is significant enough to indicate the need for treatment.

Copyright 2006, Tony Plant Happystance Project

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