A recent scientific study showed that teaching young children social communication skills, making friends, and dealing with anger may be linked to better mental health in young adulthood, with lower chances of feeling lonely and showing symptoms of depression.
The Pennsylvania State University website reported in an article published the day before yesterday that the study, conducted by university researchers and published in the journal "American Psychologist," followed hundreds of children over 18 years, aiming to evaluate the long-term effects of teaching them social and emotional skills during early childhood.
The results showed that children who participated in training activities to learn sharing toys, understanding others' feelings, and calming themselves when angry, showed higher levels of optimism and life satisfaction at ages 21 and 22, along with reduced feelings of loneliness and depression symptoms, compared to others.
Training Program Details
The program relied on two weekly sessions focusing on friendship skills, understanding emotions, resolving conflicts, and language development, alongside training teachers to help children handle daily classroom conflicts using educational methods.
The study noted that acquiring social and emotional skills in early childhood may have positive effects extending into young adulthood, highlighting the importance of integrating these skills into educational programs alongside reading and writing.
These results highlight the importance of developing social and emotional skills in children from the earliest years, due to their potential role in enhancing their ability to build positive relationships and deal with psychological and social challenges in later stages of life.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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