Columbine, Kathryn G. (2010) Developing Social and Emotional Well-Being in Young Children: An Evaluation of the Fun FRIENDS Program. Honours thesis, University of Southern Queensland. (Unpublished)
Abstract
The central role of social and emotional well-being in young children’s lives is beginning to be acknowledged in the fields of psychology and education. Research has shown that social and emotional well-being is fundamental to children’s academic success, mental health and development into confident and competent members of society. Approximately 14% of 4 to 12-year-old children in Australia experience social and emotional difficulties and mental ill-health, and interventions to address these issues are necessary. However, population health and positive psychology perspectives assert that interventions that focus on enhancing the social and emotional well-being and mental health of young children are also important. These interventions have the potential to address latent social and emotional issues, but more importantly, they promote optimal functioning and endeavour to provide children with knowledge, skills and strategies to cope with the inevitable complexities of life. While many social and emotional well-being programs have been developed for “at-risk” populations, few have been developed, implemented and evaluated with normal populations of children, particularly preschool children. In order to address this gap in the literature, this study sought to undertake a program evaluation to explore the effects of a universal, social and emotional well-being program, titled Fun FRIENDS, on a non-clinical sample of preschool children (N = 42). Boys (n = 17) and girls (n = 25) at a private preschool in the Australian Capital Territory participated in the Fun FRIENDS program as part of their normal school Pastoral Care program. The children were aged between 4 and 5 years (sample: M = 54 months; girls: M = 55 months; boys: M = 52 months). Teachers and parents reported on children’s social and emotional well-being using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) (Goodman, 1997). A quasi-experimental design was used, with SDQ data collected for each child at three time points (Time 1 [baseline - February], Time 2 [pre-test - April], Time 3 [post-test - August]). This allowed changes in social and emotional well-being to be tracked over a period of time. A pattern of results in which significant changes in social and emotional well-being were identified between Time 2 and Time 3, but not Time 1 and Time 2, was considered to indicate possible effects of the Fun FRIENDS program. Teacher reported SDQ data indicated that the Emotional Symptoms of all children, Hyperactivity of boys, and the Emotional Symptoms, Hyperactivity and Total Difficulties of girls, significantly decreased from Time 2 to Time 3 (p < .05), suggesting a possible program effect, with effect sizes in the medium to large range (r > .4). In the absence of a control group, however, the effects of natural maturation cannot be dismissed and so results must be interpreted with caution. Parent reported SDQ data identified no significant changes in children’s social and emotional wellbeing over the period that the Fun FRIENDS program was implemented. While this finding is consistent with other similar studies, this discrepancy between teacher and parent reports of social and emotional well-being is highlighted as an area requiring further research. The results highlight the changing nature of young children’s development and several possible alternative explanations for the significant changes observed in the teacher data are offered. Further research utilising a control group is recommended, in order to explore the effects of the Fun FRIENDS program when controlling for natural maturation.
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| Item Type: | Thesis (Non-Research) (Honours) |
|---|---|
| Item Status: | Live Archive |
| Additional Information: | Current UniSQ staff and students can request access to this thesis. Please email research.repository@unisq.edu.au with a subject line of SEAR thesis request and provide: Name of the thesis requested and Your name and UniSQ email address |
| Faculty/School / Institute/Centre: | Historic - Faculty of Sciences - Department of Psychology (Up to 30 Jun 2013) |
| Supervisors: | Beccaria, Gavin |
| Qualification: | Bachelor of Science (Honours) (Psychology) |
| Date Deposited: | 06 Jan 2026 03:18 |
| Last Modified: | 06 Jan 2026 03:18 |
| Fields of Research (2008): | 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 1799 Other Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 179999 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences not elsewhere classified |
| Fields of Research (2020): | 52 PSYCHOLOGY > 5299 Other psychology > 529999 Other psychology not elsewhere classified |
| URI: | https://sear.unisq.edu.au/id/eprint/52219 |
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