The effectiveness of a group counseling program based on zumba exercises in enhancing emotional well-being among a sample of adolescent female students

Introduction: There is an increasing need for psychological counseling services during adolescence, due to the many changes the adolescents go through during this period in all areas of their development, This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of a group-counseling program based on Zumba exercises in enhancing the emotional well-being among a sample of adolescent female students. Method: Thirty teenagers from the Greek Catholic Secondary Girls' School, affiliated with the Directorate of Education in the First Zarqa District participated in the study. They volunteered to participate in the developmental counseling program, their ages ranging between 13 and 16 years old, with an average age of 14.5 years. The participants were randomly assigned to two equal groups, one experimental and the other control, each consisting of 15 students. A pre- and post-test was applied to them, while a follow-up test was applied to participants of the experimental group one month after the end of the group-counseling program. the researcher developed a group-counseling program based on Zumba exercises. Additionally, the researcher translated the Sterling Emotional Well-Being Scale for Children and Adolescents, consisting of 15 items distributed across three dimensions: positive emotional state, positive outlook, and social desirability. The psychometric characteristics of validity and reliability of the scale were verified. The program was implemented for the participants in the experimental group over the course of 10 sessions, with each session lasting 60 minutes, conducted twice a week. Results: statistical analysis indicated statistically significant differences in posttest scores between the experimental and control groups, favoring the experimental group in the total score of the Sterling Emotional Well-being Scale for Children and Adolescents, as well as subscales. Furthermore, the results indicated no differences in the scores of the experimental group on the posttest and follow up test after one month, indicating the maintenance of emotional well-being levels among the experimental group members one month after the counseling program ended. Conclusion: This suggested that the group counseli ng program based on Zumba exercises used in this study contributed to enhancing emotional well-being among the sample of adolescent female students in the city of Zarqa, in addition to the persistent effect of the program after one-month follow-up. Recommendation: the implementation of Zumba-based programs with adolescent female students to help enhance their emotional well-being. It also suggested conducting experimental studies based on Zumba exercises and positive psychology on diverse samples of students across different educational levels and individuals from the local community of all ages.