What works in community-based group counselling to improve resilience in children (6-14 years): A rapid literature review

Abstract

This presentation provides insights from a rapid literature review focused on community-based counselling interventions aimed at improving resilience amongst children aged 6-14 years. The aim was to determine what types of interventions are most effective in supporting children in the general population with a focus on prevention and mental health promotion, facilitated by non-clinicians / non-specialists. The review sample consisted of 9 international literature reviews and 3 Australian primary data studies published since 2019. Evidence mostly comes from interventions in school settings by a combination of teaching staff and professional mental health practitioners. Firstly, this presentation will provide a map of risk and protective factors associated with resilience at the individual, family, community and cultural levels. Second, findings relating to what works in community-based interventions will be presented, divided into three intervention types: psychoeducational, relaxation/mindfulness and counselling with art. This content covers features of interventions as well as multiple resilience and wellbeing related outcomes. Third, practice insights for what good practice looks like will be presented. To supplement this third area, additional evidence synthesis insights are provided relating to what good practice in counselling looks like more generally. This will focus on common factors across intervention types that have been shown to account for as much as 85% of the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions and mostly relate to client factors, practitioner skills and qualities and the therapeutic alliance between client and practitioner (i.e., factors not relating to the therapeutic model adopted).

Reference

MacDonald, J. B. & Dobud., W. (2024). What works in community-based group counselling to improve resilience in children (6-14 years): A rapid literature review. Child and Adolescent Mental Health Conference, 18–20 March. Gold Coast, Australia. (Paper)