To facilitate students’ transition into secondary school, a short, problem-oriented group program was designed that included interpretation retraining, problem solving, and social-skills training. Pre- and post-test data from two groups conducted over the course of 5 weeks were combined for a total of 35 6th-grade students waiting to undergo school transition. There was also a no-intervention control group (n = 19). Results indicate that completion of the program by the intervention group led to a significant decrease on negative interpretations, with greater reductions in feelings of loneliness and increases in children's positive attitudes toward school compared to the control group. In addition, 3 months before moving to secondary school, children in the intervention group reported significantly fewer concerns about school transition compared with the controls. We conclude that the inclusion of problem-based strategies may be beneficial when designing transition groups, which may also lead to a significant reduction in worries and concerns about the transition to secondary school.
BarberB.K., & OlsenJ.A. (2004). Assessing the transitions to middle and high school. Journal of Adolescent Research, 19, 3–30.
3.
BirchS.H., & LaddG.W. (1996). Interpersonal relationships in the school environment and children's early school adjustment: The role of teachers and peers. In J.Juvonen & K.R.Wentzel (Eds.), Social motivation: Understanding children's school adjustment (pp. 199–225). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
4.
BlanksteinK.R., FlettG.L., WatsonM.S. (1992). Coping and academic problem-solving ability in test anxiety. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 48, 37–46.
5.
CoxP., BamfordG.M., & LauJ.Y.F. (2015). Cognitive bias modification as a strategy to reduce children's fears and concerns about the secondary school transition. Anxiety, Stress, and Coping, 29, 447–456.
6.
Cartwright-HattonS., ReynoldsS., & WilsonC. (2011). Adult models of anxiety and their application to children and adolescents. In W.K.Silverman & A.P.Field (Eds.), Anxiety disorders in children and adolescents (2nd ed., pp. 129–158). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
7.
CreswellC., & O'ConnorT.G. (2011). Interpretation bias and anxiety in childhood: Stability, specificity, and longitudinal association. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 39, 191–204.
8.
CrickN., & DodgeK. (1994). A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children's social adjustment. Psychological Bulletin, 115, 74–101.
9.
DubowE.F., TisakJ., CauseyD., HryshkoA., & ReidG. (1991). A two-year longitudinal study of stressful life events, social support, and social problem-solving skills: Contributions to children's behavioral and academic adjustment. Child Development, 62, 583–599.
10.
GerrityD.A., & DeLucia-WaackJ.L. (2007). Effectiveness of groups in the schools. The Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 32, 97–106.
11.
Grills-TaquechelA.E., NortonP., & OllendickT.H. (2010). A longitudinal examination of factors predicting anxiety during the transition to middle school. Anxiety, Stress and Coping, 23, 493–513.
12.
HallK.R. (2006). Solving Problems Together: A psychoeducational group model for victims of bullies. The Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 31, 201–217.
13.
HallK.R., RushingJ.L., & KhurshidA. (2011). Using the Solving Problems Together psychoeducational group counseling model as an intervention for negative peer pressure. The Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 36, 97–110.
Herzig-AndersonK., ColognoriD., FoxJ.K., StewartC.E., & Masia WarnerC. (2012). School-based anxiety treatments for children and adolescents. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 21, 655–668.
16.
HoppittL., MathewsA., YiendJ., & MackintoshB. (2010). Cognitive mechanisms underlying the emotional effects of bias modification. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 24, 312–325.
17.
HymelS., & FrankeS. (1985). Children's peer relations: Assessing self perceptions. In B.H.Schneider, K.H.Rubin, & J.E.Ledingham (Eds.), Children's peer relations: Issues in assessment and intervention (pp. 75–91). New York: Springer Verlag.
18.
JacobM.L., SuvegC., & WhiteheadM.R. (2014). Relations between emotional and social functioning in children with anxiety disorders. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 45, 529–532.
19.
KivlighanD.M., & GoldfineD.C. (1991). Endorsement of therapeutic factors as a function of stage of group development and participant interpersonal attitudes. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 38, 150–158.
20.
KulicK.R., DagleyJ.C., & HorneA.M. (2001). Prevention groups with children and adolescents. Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 26, 211–218.
21.
LaddG.W., BuhsE.S., & SeidM. (2000). Children's initial sentiments about kindergarten: Is school liking an antecedent of early classroom participation and achievement? Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 46, 255–279.
22.
LaddG.W., KochenderferB.J., & ColemanC.C. (1996). Friendship quality as a predictor of young children's early school adjustment. Child Development, 67, 1103–1118.
23.
LaddG.W., KochenderferB.J., & ColemanC.C. (1997). Classroom peer acceptance, friendship, and victimization: Distinct relation systems that contribute uniquely to children's school adjustment? Child Development, 68, 1181–1197.
24.
LindemannC. (1996). Handbook of the treatment of the anxiety disorders. Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson.
25.
ManassisK. (2012). Problem solving in child and adolescent psychotherapy: A skills-based collaborative approach. New York: Guilford Press.
26.
McDonaldA., S. (2001). The prevalence and effects of test anxiety in school children. Educational Psychology, 21, 89, 101.
27.
MurdockK.K., GreeneC., AdamsS.K., HartmannW., BittingerS., & WillK. (2010). The puzzle of problem-solving efficacy: Understanding anxiety among urban children coping with asthma-related and life stress. Anxiety, Stress and Coping, 23, 383–398.
28.
PettitG.S., BatesJ.E., & DodgeK.A. (1997). Supportive parenting, ecological context, and children's adjustment: A seven-year longitudinal study. Child Development, 68, 908–923.
29.
PomerantzE.M., AltermattE.R., & SaxonJ.L. (2002). Making the grade but feeling distressed: Gender differences in academic performance and internal distress. Journal of Educational Psychology, 94, 396–404.
30.
RiceF., FredericksonN., & SeymourJ. (2011). Assessing pupil concerns about transition to secondary school. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 81, 244–263.
31.
ShechtmanZ. (2014). Group counseling in the schools. Hellenic Journal of Psychology, 11, 169–183.
32.
ShilohS. (1996) Decision-making in the context of genetic risk. In T.Marteu & M.Richards (Eds.), The troubled helix: Social and psychological implications of the new human genetics (pp. 82–103). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
33.
TombM., & HunterL. (2004). Prevention of anxiety in children and adolescents in a school setting: The role of school-based practitioners. Children and Schools, 26, 87–101.
34.
TownsendM.C. (2013). Essential of psychiatric mental health nursing: Concepts of care in evidence-based practice (6th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis.
35.
Van VelsorP. (2017). Let's all play together nicely: Facilitating collaboration in children's groups. Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 42, 299–315.
36.
VassilopoulosS.P., BanerjeeR., & PrantzalouC. (2009). Experimental modification of interpretation bias in socially anxious children: Changes in interpretation, anticipated interpersonal anxiety, and social anxiety symptoms. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 47, 1085–1089.
37.
VassilopoulosS.P., BrouzosA., DamerD.E., MellouA., & MitropoulouA. (2013). A psychoeducational school-based group intervention for socially anxious children. The Journal for Specialists in Group Work, 38, 307–329.
38.
VinsonT. (2006). Good transitions: Through the eyes of primary and secondary principals. Unpublished manuscript, University of Sydney. Retrieved from https://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/bitstream/2123/1916/1/Good_Transitions_Paper.pdf
39.
WeisR. (2014). Introduction to abnormal child and adolescent psychology (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
40.
WeldyG.R. (1995). Critical transitions. Schools in the Middle, 4, 5–7.
41.
WestP., SweetingH., & YoungR. (2010). Transition matters: Pupils’ experiences of the primary-secondary school transition in the West of Scotland and consequences for well-being and attainment. Research Papers in Education, 25, 21–50.
42.
WigfieldA., LutzS.L., & WagnerA.L. (2005). Early adolescents’ development across the middle school years: Implications for school counselors. Professional School Counseling, 9, 1–8.
