Abstract
Anxiety and depression are the most commonly reported mental health problems amongst Australian children and adolescents. The Aussie Optimism: Program-Positive Thinking Skills (AOP-PTS) is a universal intervention program based on cognitive and behavioral strategies and aimed to prevent anxiety and depression in the middle primary school children aged 9–10 years old. 370 students randomly assigned to the intervention and control condition participated in the 42 and 54 months follow-up study. The intervention group received the AOP-PTS 10-week program and the control group received the regular health education curriculum. Students were assessed on anxiety, depression and attribution style at school whilst parents reported on their child’s externalizing and internalizing problems at home. Results showed there were no significant reductions across groups in the depressive and anxiety symptoms, and attribution style at either 42 or 54 months follow-up. These findings suggest that AOP-PTS has short and medium term effects but were not sustained in longer term period. Future strategies to achieve the desirable outcomes in a longitudinal study are discussed.
Highlights
A recent Australian government report cited mental health problems as accounting for the highest burden of disease among Australian children (Bayer et al, 2007; Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2009)
Evidence consistently indicates that anxiety or depressive symptoms during childhood may develop into similar disorders during adolescence and adulthood (Barrett et al, 1996, 2005; Kovacs, 1997; Bandura et al, 1999; Bayer and Sanson, 2003; Klein et al, 2005) and it was predicted that life time cases of mental health disorders partially started by the age of 14 (Robinson et al, 2011)
It was hypothesized that children who were exposed to the Aussie Optimism: Program-Positive Thinking Skills (AOP-PTS) program in years 4–5 of primary school would report lower levels of internalizing symptomatology, as indexed by measures of depression (CDI) and anxiety (SCAS), when compared to children in a matched control group following the transition to high school
Summary
A recent Australian government report cited mental health problems as accounting for the highest burden of disease among Australian children (Bayer et al, 2007; Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2009). Whilst externalizing disorders, such as ADHD and conduct disorder, represent the more overt manifestations of mental health problems in children, the internalizing disorders, such as anxiety and depression, are consistently reported as the most common mental health problems amongst Australian children aged between 7 and 14 years (Prior et al, 1999; Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2009). Identifying feelings and being brave Feelings, situations, and thoughts The thought feeling connection Helpful and unhelpful thinking Looking for evidence and thinking positively – brave hierarchy steps begin Think before you sink Challenging situations and thinking the worst Best, worst and most likely outcomes Being positive
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