The Effects of a SWELE Program on Mental Wellbeing Among Children and Adolescents With Special Educational Needs and Disabilities: A Quasi-Experimental Study.
Regina Lai Tong Lee, Alice Wai Yi Leung, Yuen Yu Chong and 3 others
PMID 41414736WHAT IT FOUND
Children and adolescents with special educational needs had higher mood, lower anxiety, better self-regulation, social skills and playfulness after a school-based outdoor free play and mindfulness program.
Without a control group, this cannot prove the program caused the changes.
Key findings
01On the 5-point mood scale, mean scores rose from 3.54 before the program to 4.23 after it.
02On the 6 to 24 point anxiety scale, mean scores fell from 28.38 before the program to 19.67 after it.
03Self-regulation, social skills and playfulness also improved after the program, but the study had no control group.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
There was no control group, so the study cannot show the program caused the changes. Outcomes were measured only immediately after the program, so long-term effects were not assessed. Participants were recruited from special schools in Hong Kong, and most had intellectual disability, so results may not apply to other settings or disability groups. The authors could not randomise participants or include a control group because of ethical and logistical concerns. The report gives different primary and secondary section participant counts in the text and table, which makes exact subgroup interpretation difficult.
Declared interests
The SWELE program was funded by Phase II of the Mental Health Initiatives Funding Scheme, granted by the Food and Health Bureau, the Government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that the SWELE program caused the improvements. This was a single-group pre-test and post-test study with no control group, so causal conclusions are limited.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →