Evidence for an Impact of Super Skills for Life on Emotional and Behavioral Difficulties in Greek Anxious Children

Super Skills for Life (SSL) is a transdiagnostic psychoeducational program designed for children with anxiety and depressive symptoms based on cognitive-behavioral therapy. Empirically documented studies to date have demonstrated its immediate and long-term effectiveness in different contexts. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of the SSL program to reduce emotional and behavioral difficulties in a clinical sample of Greek-speaking primary school children aged 6 to 12. The program was implemented over 2 years in a community child mental health unit of the NHS. The sample consisted of 23 children attending elementary school who had been diagnosed with at least one anxiety disorder (AD). Small groups of 4 to 6 children with a similar age range were formed, and each session was held once a week for 1 hour. Assessments were conducted before and after the 8-week intervention by using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire parent form. After the intervention, a reduction was observed in children's hyperactivity (Z = -2.83, p = 0.01), peer problems (Z = -2.69, p = 0.01), as well as total scores of SDQ parent form (Z = -2.31, p = 0.02). A statistically significant increase in children's prosocial skills was also observed (Z = -2.470, p = 0.01). The findings of this study imply an immediate effect of the Greek adaptation of SSL, suggesting that it could be a valuable resource for early reduction, not only of emotional but also of comorbid symptoms in young Greek-speaking children. Finally, these results suggest that the intervention could be delivered by a non-mental health specialist since the program coordinator was a special educator. Clinical implications of these findings are discussed further in this report.