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School-Based Positive Psychology Interventions that Promote Well-Being in Children: A Systematic Review

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Abstract

The present study aimed to identify which school-based positive psychology interventions are effective for increasing children’s well-being; synthesize existing interventions; and summarize the quality of identified studies. This systematic literature review includes publications up to August 2020, retrieved from the PsycINFO, ERIC and Scopus databases. This review comprises fifteen studies that fit the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Most of the interventions, programs and curricula that aimed to promote children’s well-being focused on elements of subjective well-being, and their effects remained in the short and long-term. Most of the programs that showed a positive effect on well-being were delivered by teachers, which may have enhanced the success of the programs. To be effective, the content of interventions can include a single component or multiple components of well-being. Further research is needed to verify the impact of the effects on well-being through follow-up assessments. The overall quality of the reports is adequate, but most of them lack a randomized controlled design.

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*Studies preceded by an asterisk were included in the systematic review.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universidade Federal Do Rio Grande Do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Cyntia Mendes de Oliveira, Carla Regina Santos Almeida & Claudia Hofheinz Giacomoni

  2. Department of Developmental Psychology and Personality, Universidade Federal Do Rio Grande Do Sul, Rua Ramiro Barcelos, 2600, sala 224, Porto Alegre, RS, 90035-003, Brazil

    Cyntia Mendes de Oliveira

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  1. Cyntia Mendes de Oliveira
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  2. Carla Regina Santos Almeida
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Correspondence to Cyntia Mendes de Oliveira.

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Appendix

Appendix

1.1 Abbreviations of Questionnaires

Subjective well-being: SHS: Subjective Happiness Scale; OHQ: Oxford Happiness Questionnaire; I-PANAS-SF: International Positive And Negative Affect Schedule-Short Form; SLSS: Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale; PANAS-C: Positive and Negative Affect Scale for Children; MSLSS: Multidimensional Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale; BMSLSS: Brief Multidimensional Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale; PANAS-C-P: Parent Version of the 10-Item Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for Children; GHS: General Happiness Scale; SLS: Satisfaction with Life Scale; SCHI: School Children’s Happiness Inventory; CINSS: 18-item Children’s Intrinsic Needs Satisfaction Scale; SWLC: The Satisfaction With Life Scale for Children; SCWBS: Stirling Children’s Well-being Scale

Psychological well-being: PWS: Psychological Well-Being Scale; WEMW: Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale; MHKC: Mental Health Knowledge Checklist; CATS-N/P: Children’s Automatic Thought Scale-Negative/Positive. KINDL-R: KINDL-R questionnaire

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Mendes de Oliveira, C., Santos Almeida, C.R. & Hofheinz Giacomoni, C. School-Based Positive Psychology Interventions that Promote Well-Being in Children: A Systematic Review. Child Ind Res 15, 1583–1600 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-022-09935-3

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