Wilfrid Laurier University Scholars Commons @ Laurier Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) 2020 Be Kind to Your Mind: A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing the Benefits of Mindfulness and Self-Compassion vs Social Skills Training Among Children and Adolescents Lindsey Feltis felt4850@mylaurier.ca Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd Part of the Clinical Psychology Commons, and the Developmental Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Feltis, Lindsey, "Be Kind to Your Mind: A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing the Benefits of Mindfulness and Self-Compassion vs Social Skills Training Among Children and Adolescents" (2020) Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) 2269 https://scholars.wlu.ca/etd/2269 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive) by an authorized administrator of Scholars Commons @ Laurier For more information, please contact scholarscommons@wlu.ca Be Kind to Your Mind: A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing the Benefits of Mindfulness and Self-Compassion vs Social Skills Training among Children and Adolescents by Lindsey E Feltis MASTER’S THESIS Submitted to the Department of Psychology/Faculty of Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Developmental Psychology Wilfrid Laurier University © Lindsey Erin Feltis 2020 Abstract Childhood and adolescence can be difficult for young people as they navigate a variety of significant transitions Thus, it is imperative that researchers focus on programs that support children and adolescents during this time Mindfulness and self-compassion are two such programs that may promote positive youth development Mindfulness and self-compassion have been explored in the adolescent context, and mindfulness has been explored with young children, however research on self-compassion for children is currently lacking The present studies were designed to examine the feasibility, acceptability and potential benefits of a combined mindfulness + self-compassion program for children and adolescents in the summer camp setting In Study One, adolescent camp counsellors (n=25) were randomly assigned to one of two training conditions: mindfulness + self-compassion (n=13) or social skills training (n=12) Throughout the summer, counsellors led activities for their campers that related to their respective conditions It was expected that adolescent camp counsellors in the mindfulness + self-compassion condition would experience greater increases in mindfulness, self-compassion, resilience, empathy and sympathy, emotion regulation, authenticity, and life satisfaction, when compared to their control condition (social skills training) counterparts Additionally, it was expected that adolescents in the mindfulness + self-compassion condition would experience greater decreases in social anxiety and depression, when compared to participants in the control condition Results indicated that counsellors in both conditions experienced significant increases in mindfulness, self-compassion, self-esteem, resilience, emotion regulation, and life satisfaction Additionally, compared to their control condition counterparts, counsellors in the mindfulness + self-compassion condition experienced greater increases in life satisfaction and authenticity, with their increases in resilience approaching statistical significance Study Two focused on the ii feasibility, acceptability and potential benefits of mindfulness and self-compassion for young campers (n=231) It was expected that young campers would experience the same benefits as the aforementioned adolescent camp counsellors Contrary to hypotheses, campers in the mindfulness + self-compassion condition did not experience greater benefits than their social skills training condition counterparts on any of the assessed outcomes, demonstrating that further research is needed in order to examine the potential benefits of mindfulness and self-compassion for children Limitations and suggestions for future research are included in the general discussion The present set of studies expands upon the research on mindfulness and selfcompassion, and explores the potential benefits for young children and adolescents innovatively by using active control groups and conducting research in the summer camp setting Overall, the present set of studies contributes to existing literature that suggests mindfulness and selfcompassion promote positive development for adolescents, and illustrates the need for additional research for mindfulness and self-compassion in the context of childhood Keywords: mindfulness, self-compassion, children, adolescents, summer camp, life satisfaction, authenticity, resilience iii Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to thank the two women who continually support me, challenge me and inspire me, my supervisors, Dr Nancy Kocovski and Dr Kim P Roberts I consider myself very lucky to have spent the past few years working closely with not one, but two amazing women, who embrace my enthusiasm and who instill in me a desire for excellence I’d also like to thank my committee member Dr Alexandra Gottardo for her insightful feedback on many thesis drafts, Dr Jennifer Robertson-Wilson for serving on my committee and Dr Bruce McKay for chairing my defense Additionally, I’d like to thank all of the research assistants who supported this project: Jenna Sommerville, Poppy Hua, Jalen Manett, Holly Nelson, Kelly Schaus, and give special recognition to Ashley Siegel for her assistance with program delivery I’d also like to thank my friends and family for their continuous support on this incredible journey, especially my mother, Patti, for her unconditional love and encouragement Finally, I want to acknowledge the overnight summer camp in Southwestern Ontario who graciously participated in this research project I want to thank the camp, their executive director, camp director, leadership team, counsellors and every single camper who participated in this research This research would not be possible without you iv Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………………ii Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………………….iv Table of Contents………………………………………………………………………………….v List of Tables…………………………………………………………………………………… vi List of Figures………………………………………………………………………………… viii List of Appendices…………………………………………………………………………… ix Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………… Study One……………………………………………………………………………………… 22 Method………………………………………………………………………………… 22 Results……………………………………………………………………………………33 Discussion……………………………………………………………………………… 38 Study Two……………………………………………………………………………………… 44 Method………………………………………………………………………………… 45 Results……………………………………………………………………………………50 Discussion……………………………………………………………………………… 59 General Discussion………………………………………………………………………………65 References……………………………………………………………………………………… 82 Tables…………………………………………………………………………………………….93 Figures………………………………………………………………………………………… 112 Appendices…………………………………………………………………………………… 114 v List of Tables Table Mindful Self-Compassion and Making Friends with Yourself Program Activities…… 93 Table Study Counsellor Demographics by Condition………………………………………94 Table Study and Constructs Assessed and Measures Completed by Counsellors and Campers………………………………………………………………………………………….95 Table Study and Activities for Counsellors and Campers by Condition………………….96 Table Study Baseline Measures Compared Across Conditions- Counsellors………………97 Table Study Pearson Correlations among Baseline Variables- Counsellors……………….98 Table Study.1 Acceptability and Feasibility Compared Across Conditions- Counsellors……99 Table Study.1 Self-compassion and Mindfulness at Baseline, Mid-program and Post-programCounsellors…………………………………………………………………………………… 100 Table Study Outcome Variables at Baseline and Post-program- Counsellors…………….101 Table 10 Study Camper Demographics by Condition……………………………………….102 Table 11 Study Baseline Measures Compared Across Conditions- Campers……………….103 Table 12 Study Pearson Correlations among Baseline Variables- Campers……………… 104 Table 13 Study Outcome Variables at Baseline and Post-program- Campers…………… 105 Table 14 Study Outcome Variables with Age as a Covariate at Baseline and Post-programCampers……………………………………………………………………………………… 106 Table 15 Study Sample Sizes for each Condition by Age Group- Campers…………………107 Table 16 Study Outcome Variables at Baseline and Post-program- By Campers’ Age…….108 Table 17 Study Completers (all eight measures) vs Non-completers by Condition, Age and Gender- Campers……………………………………………………………………………….109 vi Table 18 Study Completers (all eight measures) vs Non-completers on Baseline VariablesCampers……………………………………………………………………………………… 110 Table 19 Study Attrition Rates by Age Group (participants who completed less than all eight measures)……………………………………………………………………………………….111 vii List of Figures Figure Study Counsellor Participant Flow……………………………………………… 112 Figure Study Camper Participant Flow……………………………………………………113 viii List of Appendices Appendix A: Pre-program Surveys for Counsellors……………………………………………114 Appendix B: Mid-program Surveys for Counsellors………………………………………… 126 Appendix C: Post-program Survey for Counsellors……………………………………………133 Appendix D: Pre-program Surveys for Campers……………………………………………….146 Appendix E: Post-program Surveys for Campers………………………………………………154 ix