Implementing and Evaluating a Social-Emotional Learning Program for Refugee Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Yale University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Social Emotional Wellness

Treatments: Behavioral: EMPOWER

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; Industry; NIH

Identifiers

NCT04931888

2000030455

KL2TR001862 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The overall goal of this overall goal is to pilot an adaptation of an established Social-Emotional Learning Program with novel wellness and COVID-19 safety components that are trauma-informed and culturally-specific in a resettled refugee community. In this pilot, "EMPOWER" (Emotions Program Outside the clinic and Wellness Education for Refugees), the study team will assess implementation outcomes (adoption, acceptability, and feasibility) of EMPOWER with refugee children and families during the COVID-19 pandemic through longitudinal evaluations and measurements of feasibility, acceptability, and attrition. The study team will also evaluate the impact of EMPOWER by assessing (a) children's social-emotional learning competence and (b) children's and family's COVID-19 knowledge.

Full description

The major question that guides this research is: can an adaptation of an established Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum effectively improve Social-Emotional wellness for refugee children and their families? The hypothesis is that participation in this program will (a) improve children's SEL competence and (b) lessen stress and improve quality of life for refugee families.

The overall objective of this study is to establish and evaluate the preliminary efficacy and implementation of an adapted social-emotional learning (SEL) and Wellness Program for refugees: EMPOWER (Emotions Program Outside the clinic with Wellness Education for Refugees). To achieve the two aims of this study, the study team will conduct a wait-list controlled pilot to establish and evaluate the preliminary efficacy of participation in EMPOWER by assessing (a) children's SEL competence and (b) measures of mental health, stress, quality of life and wellness before and after participation in the program (Aim 1). Then, the study team will assess the implementation of EMPOWER with refugee children by using mixed methods to perform a summative evaluation of implementation outcomes-including fidelity, sustainability, and reach-in the Afghan refugee community (Aim 2).

Enrollment: 31 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 5 to 15 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• at least 1 year of schooling in the United States
• must speak: Pashto, Dari or English
• connected with the community organization: Elena's Light

Exclusion criteria

• inability to meet any of the requirements of the inclusion criteria

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Non-Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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31 participants in 2 patient groups

Intervention

Experimental group

Description:

The intervention arm will receive the EMPOWER curriculum between the pre- and post-evaluations.

Treatment:

Behavioral: EMPOWER

Waitlist

Other group

Description:

The waitlist control arm will receive the EMPOWER curriculum after the evaluations. They will receive a second set of evaluations at the same time as the "post" evaluations of the control arm.

Treatment:

Behavioral: EMPOWER