March 2022Vol. 23, No. 2EMOTION Program Strives to Help Children Address Anxiety and Depression
EMOTION: "Coping Kids" Managing Anxiety and Depression is a 20-session program designed to help children build skills to address anxiety and depression and to help parents support their children in this work. Children involved with child welfare often experience anxiety and depression for a number of reasons, including maltreatment, having to leave their homes and families for foster care, and adjusting to unstable living situations.
Designed for children ages 8 to 12 and their caregivers, the EMOTION program typically consists of weekly meetings that take place over a 6-month period. The program is often implemented in hospitals, group or residential care facilities, and school settings. Key components of the program include the following:
- Target underlying causes of anxiety and depression in youth
- Teach and practice skills to address anxiety and depression
- Provide activities for parents and caregivers to support children
- Engage children through problem-solving, emotion education, exposure tasks, behavioral experiments, homework assignments, and parental involvement