Evidence Base | Amazing Minds

Amazing Me has been developed based on scientific research into optimal human functioning and wellbeing within the burgeoning field of Positive Psychology. Every stage of the development has been informed by extensive research in order to ensure that the resources have a strong evidence-base to support them. References for some academic articles are included below should you wish to read more widely about the underpinning evidence of this programme.

We would like to bring your attention to the paper at the top of the list - Cultivating Emotion Differentiation in Children: The development of emotion differentiation resources for schools - which is an abridged version of a master's dissertation paper written by one of our directors, Tracy Richardson. The paper focuses on the rationale for and the science behind the Amazing Emotions materials within the programme and also outlines the original development of Amazing Me.

References

Amazing Me

Cultivating Emotion Differentiation in Children: The development of emotion differentiation resources for schools (Richardson, 2019)

Positive Psychology

Alex Linley, P., Joseph, S., Harrington, S., & Wood, A. M. (2006). Positive psychology: Past, present, and (possible) future. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 1(1), 3-16. doi:10.1080/17439760500372796

Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5-14. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.5

Wong, P. T. P. (2011). Positive psychology 2.0: Towards a balanced interactive model of the good life. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie canadienne, 52(2), 69-81. doi:10.1037/a0022511

Positive Education

Alejandro, A. (2017). Positive Education: Educating for academic success and for a fulfilling life. Papeles del Psicólogo, 38(1), 50-57. doi:10.23923/pap.psicol2017.2821

Norrish, J. (2015). Positive education: the Geelong Grammar School journey. Oxford: Oxford : Oxford University Press.

Yukun, Z., Feng, Y., Yiwen, W., Guang, Z., & Kaiping, P. (2019). Positive Education Interventions Prevent Depression in Chinese Adolescents. Frontiers in Psychology, 10. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01344

Mindfulness in Schools

Felver, J. C., Doerner, E., Jones, J., Kaye, N. C., & Merrell, K. W. (2013). Mindfulness in School Psychology: Applications for Intervention and Professional Practice. Psychology in the Schools, 50(6), 531-547. doi:10.1002/pits.21695

Kuyken, W., Nuthall, E., Byford, S., Crane, C., Dalgleish, T., Ford, T., . . . Williams, J. M. G. (2017). The effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a mindfulness training programme in schools compared with normal school provision (MYRIAD): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. Trials, 18(1), 194. doi:10.1186/s13063-017-1917-4

Vickery, C. E., & Dorjee, D. (2015). Mindfulness Training in Primary Schools Decreases Negative Affect and Increases Meta-Cognition in Children. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 2025. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.02025

Zenner, C., Herrnleben-Kurz, S., & Walach, H. (2014). Mindfulness-based interventions in schools—a systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 5(603). doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00603

Reflective Thinking

Fivush, R., Booker, J. A., & Graci, M. E. (2017). Ongoing Narrative Meaning-Making Within Evevnts and Across the Life Span. Imagination, Cognition and Personality: Consciousness in Theory, Research, and Clinical Practice, 37(2), 127-152.

Fonagy, P., Steele, M., Steele, H., Moran, G. S., & Higgitt, A. C. (1991). The capacity for understanding mental states: The reflective self in parent and child and its significance for security of attachment. Infant Mental Health Journal, 12, 201-218

Pennebaker, J. W., & Evans, J., F. (2014). Expressive Writing Words That Heal. Enumclaw: Idyll Arbor.

Character Strengths

Gillham, J., Adams-Deutsch, Z., Werner, J., Reivich, K., Coulter-Heindl, V., Linkins, M., . . . Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Character strengths predict subjective well-being during adolescence. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 6(1), 31-44. doi:10.1080/17439760.2010.536773

Proctor, C., Tsukayama, E., Wood, A. M., Maltby, J., Eades, J. F., & Linley, P. A. (2011). Strengths Gym: The impact of a character strengths-based intervention on the life satisfaction and well-being of adolescents. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 6(5), 377-388. doi:10.1080/17439760.2011.594079

Quinlan, D., Swain, N., & Vella-Brodrick, D. A. (2012). Character Strengths Interventions: Building on What We Know for Improved Outcomes. Journal of Happiness Studies, 13(6), 1145-1163. doi:10.1007/s10902-011-9311-5

Emotion Differentiation

Kashdan, T., Barrett, L. F., & McKnight, P. E. (2015). Unpacking Emotion Differentiation: Transforming Unpleasant Experience by Perceiving Distinctions in Negativity. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 24(1), 10-16.

Kashdan, T. B., & Farmer, A. S. (2014). Differentiating Emotions Across Contexts: Comparing Adults With and Without Social Anxiety Disorder Using Random, Social Interaction, and Daily Experience Sampling. Emotion, 14(3), 629-638. doi:10.1037/a0035796

Nook, E. C., Sasse, S. F., Lambert, H. K., McLaughlin, K. A., & Somerville, L. H. (2018). The Nonlinear Development of Emotion Differentiation: Granular Emotional Experience Is Low in Adolescence. Psychological Science (0956-7976), 29(8), 1346-1358.

Emotion Regulation

Chervonsky, E. (2018). Emotion regulation, mental health, and social wellbeing in a young adolescent sample: A concurrent and longitudinal investigation. Emotion. doi:10.1037/emo0000432

Cracco, E., Goosens, L., & Braet, C. (2017). Emotion regulation across childhood and adolescence: evidence for a maladaptive shift in adolescence. European child & adolescent psychiatry, 26(8), 909-922.

Garofalo, C., Velotti, P., & Zavattini, G. C. (2018). Emotion Regulation and Aggression: The Incremental Contribution of Alexithymia, Impulsivity, and Emotion Dysregulation Facets. Psychology of Violence, 8(4), 470-483. doi:10.1037/vio0000141

Roll, J., Koglin, U., & Petermann, F. (2012). Emotion Regulation and Childhood Aggression: Longitudinal Associations.Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 43(6), 909-923. doi:10.1007/s10578-012-0303-4

Somerville, M. P., & Whitebread, D. (2018). Emotion regulation and well-being in primary classrooms situated in low-socioeconomic communities. The British journal of educational psychology. doi:10.1111/bjep.12222

Resilience

Hjemdal, O., Friborg, O., & Stiles, T. C. (2012). Resilience is a predictor of hopelessness even after accounting for stressful life events, mood and personality (NEO-PI-R). Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 53, 174-180.

Luthar, S. S., Cicchetti, D., & Becker, B. (2000). The Construct of Resilience: A Critical Evaluation and Guidelines for Future Work. Child Development, 71(3), 543-562. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00164

Masten, A. S. (2001). Ordinary Magic Resilience Processes in Development. American Psychologist, 56(3), 227-238.

Tugade, M., Fredrickson, B., & Barrett, L. F. (2004). Psychological Resilience and Positive Emotional Granularity: Examining the Benefits of Positive Emotions on Coping and Health. Journal of Personality, 72(6), 1161-1190. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.2004.00294.x

References

Our Purpose: to develop engaging and cost-effective wellbeing resources grounded in science, ensuring simplicity and accessibility for schools and other community organisations.

Our Vision: Every child has an education that holds wellbeing at its core, empowering them to embrace challenge and cultivate a life that is meaningful and fulfilling to them.