Impact of a Resilience Programme on Pupil Anxiety, Depression and Mental Toughness

Authors

  • Nicola Barrington University of East London https://orcid.org/0009-0009-6967-8585
  • Rosie Hancock University of East London, Stratford Campus, Water Lane, London
  • Peter Clough University of Huddersfield, Queensgate, Huddersfield

Keywords:

Resilience, Positive Education, Positive Psychology, United Arab Emirates, Mental Toughness

Abstract

The United Arab Emirates National Vision 2021 aims to position the UAE as one of the top five happiest countries in the world. Positive psychology in schools will play a critical role in achieving this vision by enhancing the well-being of students through fostering character strengths, resilience, wellbeing and abilities. Despite the growth of positive psychology in the Middle East, efforts to test and assess its effectiveness remain scarce. We highlight the work of a resilience program to illustrate how it can further the development of positive psychology in the region. Experimental studies have investigated the impact of resilience programs in schools using anxiety and depression measures and correlational studies have explored the relationship between mental toughness and educational outcomes. Yet, no study has investigated the relationship between anxiety, depression and mental toughness, nor measured the impact of a resilience program on these three variables. To address these gaps, we conducted a 6-week experimental study to investigate the impact of the Weaving Well-being Tools of Resilience Programme on 134 Year 5 students in an Abu Dhabi primary school. Correlational analysis showed a strong, positive relationship between anxiety and depression (r = .69, p < .001) and a strong negative relationship between mental toughness and anxiety (r = -.57, p < .001) and mental toughness and depression (r = -.64, p < .001). Analysis of variance found that the resilience program had no significant effect. However, the potential for a school-based resilience program to deliver significant results remains. 

Author Biographies

Nicola Barrington, University of East London

Nicola is a Positive Psychology and Coaching Psychology Consultant, providing research-based coaching, training and consultancy for educational, governmental and commercial establishments. She has 25 years’ experience in education, with 15 years as a senior leader. 

She has a MSc (Dist) in Applied Coaching Psychology and Positive Psychology from the University of East London - the only university in the world to offer this explicitly integrated course. Nicola's dissertation investigated the impact of a school-based resilience programme on pupils’ anxiety, depression and mental toughness.

She has delivered executive coaching to large corporate organisations world-wide and to senior school leaders regionally. Nicola presented on the benefits of coaching and mentoring in education at a Teacher’s Continued Professional Development Event in Abu Dhabi. She has also delivered teacher workshops on Positive Education for Ministry of Education at the 2ndand 5thGulf Forum. She has provided whole-school training in aspects of Positive Psychology including Restorative Practices, Self-Regulation and Growth Mindset. Nicola has delivered Positive Education workshops to secondary teachers at the UAE Ministry of Education’s 2ndTeachers’ Conference and 5th Gulf Forum. She also provides wellbeing consultancy to private clients and organisations using Positive Psychology-based models.

Nicola is a member of the International Coaching Federation (ICF) and an active contributor to the Coaching Quality Circle for Education and Speed Coaching Initiative of the ICF Abu Dhabi Chapter. She is a Coach for Women Leading in Education for the UK National College for Teaching and Leadership. Nicola also volunteers her coaching skills to support Arab women in turning challenges into opportunities through the UAE ‘Coaching for Success’ initiative.

Rosie Hancock, University of East London, Stratford Campus, Water Lane, London

Rosie has been working in the field of positive psychology since 2006. She coaches individuals to build resilience and well-being while developing their careers and leadership skills. She also develops and teaches workshops on career development, resilience and positive leadership to executives in organisations of all sizes. Before focusing on positive psychology, executive and career coaching, Rosie had a wide-ranging international career as a management consultant. She has worked with individuals and companies large and small in many different industries in the UK, the US and New Zealand. She is has been a module leader and lecturer in the Master of Applied Positive Psychology and Coaching Psychology programme at the University of East London, and an assistant instructor on the Master of Applied Positive Psychology program at the University of Pennsylvania under Martin Seligman.

 

Rosie has studied positive psychology, career theory, and counselling theory to Master’s level, and uses research-based methods that have been scientifically shown to be effective. She also has personal experience of the effectiveness of the skills and techniques she teaches. She enjoys helping others work out their values and what success means to them, clarify and build on their strengths, and identify positive ways to move forward with their lives and careers.

 

Rosie holds a Master’s degree in Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania; a Master’s degree in Education with Certificate in Counselling from the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, NZ; a Graduate Certificate in Career Development from AUT University in NZ; and a Master’s degree in Mathematics from the University of Cambridge.

Peter Clough, University of Huddersfield, Queensgate, Huddersfield

Peter joined the University of Huddersfield in 2017, having previously held a post as Professor of Psychology at Manchester Metropolitan University. Prior to this, he had a lengthy career at Hull University, where he was Head of Psychology on three occasions and also was Associate Dean (Learning and Teaching). 

He is interested in performance under pressure and performance enhancement. More specifically, he researches in the area of Mental Toughness. He has written two books about this interesting concept and has produced numerous academic papers relating to his 4 'C' model. The research is carried out in partnership with a number of other institutions including: The University of Basle; University of Lincoln; University of Leeds, University of Newcastle and the University of Edinburgh. The work started in the sports domain, but is now extensively used in both business and education. Ongoing projects are looking at the possibility of enhancing mental toughness and the cognitive underpinnings of the 'mental toughness' advantage. The expertise gained is used to enhance student performance and employability. He is currently working on a number of projects relating to mental toughness in schools, sport and the business community. He is developing a range of new measures and are validating these in a number of countries

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Published

2019-12-30

How to Cite

Barrington, N., Hancock, R., & Clough, P. (2019). Impact of a Resilience Programme on Pupil Anxiety, Depression and Mental Toughness. Middle East Journal of Positive Psychology, 5(1), 60–81. Retrieved from https://www.middleeastjournalofpositivepsychology.org/index.php/mejpp/article/view/81

Issue

Vol. 5 (2019): Resilience, Student Wellbeing, Mindfulness, Conferences...

Section

English Article Manuscripts