Abstract
Objectives
Although mindfulness-based interventions with children have been increasingly used as a strategy to promote social-emotional learning, the exploration of these practices among preschoolers in limited. This pilot study examined the feasibility and effectiveness of an 8-week mindful yoga program for preschoolers living in communities with high levels of trauma. Of particular interest was whether participation in the intervention was associated with gains in children’s self-regulation of attention and behavior. A related objective was to examine the acceptability and need for trauma-informed professional development for teaching staff.
Methods
Five classrooms (n = 89 children) were randomly assigned to the intervention and control conditions; three classrooms participated during the fall and two classrooms served as wait-list controls who received the intervention in the spring.
Results
Analyses revealed significant increases in children’s behavioral and attention regulation during the time that they participated in the intervention. An unexpected potentially influential finding was the high prevalence of posttraumatic stress among staff; the majority of staff experienced were above the threshold for civilian PTSD.
Conclusions
Mindful yoga may be a promising strategy to promote behavioral regulation and attention regulation among economically disadvantaged preschoolers. Staff may also benefit from trauma-informed practices given their high rate of exposure to traumatic events and above-average levels of PTSD.
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Authors’ Contributions
R.A.R. Designed and implemented the program evaluation, assisted with data analyses, and wrote the paper. R.U.L. served as a project manager and was responsible for scheduling data collection, interviewing children, entering the data, and contributing to data analysis. D.B.C. Collaborated on the design of the study, assisted with measure preparation and IRB applications, contributed to the analytic plan, and reviewed the manuscript and revisions. E.C. Assisted with data collection and entry. S.R. Assisted with data analyses.
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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of Syracuse University and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Approval for this study was obtained from the Syracuse University Internal Review Board.
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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. Parental consent included both active and passive consent. All children provided verbal assent to participate. Teachers provided active consent.
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Razza, R.A., Linsner, R.U., Bergen-Cico, D. et al. The Feasibility and Effectiveness of Mindful Yoga for Preschoolers Exposed to High Levels of Trauma. J Child Fam Stud 29, 82–93 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-019-01582-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-019-01582-7