Existential Therapy for Children: Impact of a Philosophy for Children Intervention on Positive and Negative Indicators of Mental Health in Elementary School Children

Catherine Malboeuf-Hurtubise, Carina Di Tomaso, David Lefrançois, Geneviève A. Mageau, Geneviève Taylor, Marc-André Éthier, Mathieu Gagnon and Terra Léger-Goodes
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Catherine Malboeuf-Hurtubise: Department of Psychology, Bishop’s University, Sherbrooke, QC J1M 1Z7, Canada
Carina Di Tomaso: Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada
David Lefrançois: Department of Educational Sciences, Université du Québec en Outaouais, Saint-Jérôme, QC J7Z 0B7, Canada
Geneviève A. Mageau: Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada
Geneviève Taylor: Department of Education and Pedagogy, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, QC H2L 2C4, Canada
Marc-André Éthier: Department of Didactics, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada
Mathieu Gagnon: Department of Education, Preschool and Primary School Teaching, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1K 2R1, Canada
Terra Léger-Goodes: Department of Medicine and Health Sciences, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1K 2R1, Canada

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 23, 1-14

Abstract: Background: Philosophy for children (P4C) was initially developed in the 1970s and served as an educational program to promote critical thinking, caring, creative reasoning and inquiry in the educational environment. Quasi-experimental research on P4C, a school-based approach that aims to develop children’s capacity to think by and for themselves, has suggested it could be an interesting intervention to foster greater basic psychological need satisfaction in children in school settings. Objective: The goal of the present study was to evaluate the impact of P4C on basic psychological need satisfaction and mental health in elementary school students. Method: Students from grades one to three ( N = 57) took part in this study and completed pre- and post-intervention questionnaires. A randomized cluster trial with a wait-list control group was implemented to compare the effects of P4C on students’ mental health. Results: Analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) revealed a significant effect of group condition on levels of autonomy and anxiety, after controlling for baseline levels. Participants in the experimental group showed higher scores in autonomy, when compared to participants in the control group, and participants in the experimental group showed lower anxiety scores, when compared to participants in the control group. Conclusion: Overall, results from this study show that P4C may be a promising intervention to foster greater autonomy in elementary school children, while also improving mental health.

Keywords: existential therapy; philosophy for children; self-determination theory; school-based intervention (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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