Spiritual Education Program for Reducing Social Anxieties and Improving Social Interaction Skills Among Introverted Children: A Cross-Country Longitudinal Experimental Study
This article reports on a longitudinal experimental study with 3,227 introverted children aged 6-8 years from 15 countries on the effects of a spiritual education program (SEP) in reducing social interaction phobia and anxieties and improving social interaction skills. The pre- and post-test scores...
| Published in: | Pastoral psychology |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Springer Science Business Media B. V.
[2017]
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| In: |
Pastoral psychology
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| RelBib Classification: | AG Religious life; material religion CB Christian life; spirituality ZD Psychology ZF Education |
| Further subjects: | B
Social anxieties
B Spirituality B Spiritual education program B Social phobia B Social interaction skills B SOCIAL phobia in children B Longitudinal Study B Introverted children B Social Interaction B INTROVERTS B SOCIAL anxiety |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | This article reports on a longitudinal experimental study with 3,227 introverted children aged 6-8 years from 15 countries on the effects of a spiritual education program (SEP) in reducing social interaction phobia and anxieties and improving social interaction skills. The pre- and post-test scores of the treatment group children were examined and compared with the scores of the control group on the following measures: the play interaction dimension of the Penn Interactive Peer Play Scale (PIPPS-PI), the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children (SPAI-C), and the Children's Self-Efficacy in Peer Interaction Scale (CSPI). Results showed that the scores of the control group and pre-test scores of the treatment group were lower on the PIPPS-PI and CSPI and higher on the SPAI-C. Post-test or post-SEP scores of the treatment group children were higher on the PIPPS-PI and CSPI and lower on the SPAI-C. Boys, upper-middle-class children, Christians, children who lived with both their parents, children who did three or four rounds of the SEP, and children who regularly self-practiced scored higher on the PIPPS-PI post-test. Post-treatment CSPI scores were higher for children from affluent countries. The most effective predictors of higher post-test CSPI scores were the number of rounds of SEP and self-practice. Results suggest the importance of SEP for introverted children who experience social interaction anxieties. |
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| ISSN: | 1573-6679 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Pastoral psychology
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1007/s11089-017-0782-0 |