Introduction / Rationale: Children with developmental needs may face self-regulation difficulties which can limit school participation. One-to-one intervention is effective but difficult to generalize to a social context. The authors developed a 7-week self-regulation group intervention (SRG), where two occupational therapists facilitated six children. Parents observed via synchronous video and discussed ways to apply strategies in their daily interactions with child at the end of each session.
Objectives: This study sought to understand if SRG met parents’ expectations, and how well parents and child applied the strategies.
Methods: Parents (n=12) completed a questionnaire at the last session to indicate if their child met the goal they set at the first session. They also rated how well their child used the strategies taught, and how well they facilitated their child’s use of the strategies, on a 5-point Likert scale. Descriptive statistics was used for data analysis.
Results: Ten parents (83%) agreed that SRG met their goals (e.g. improved self-awareness, self-control). 75% agreed or strongly agreed that they were able to facilitate their child in using the strategies, while 33% indicated confidence in knowing precisely when to facilitate. 75% agreed that their children acquired the knowledge (e.g. categorize emotions into various zones). Parents felt that there should be more sessions to help children learn.
Conclusion / Contribution to the occupational therapy profession: Results indicated that SRG and parent facilitation might improve child’s self-regulation. Future SRG should consider extending sessions to improve acquisition and application of knowledge, and help parents recognize when to facilitate. Occupational therapists should design appropriate group interventions to develop children’s self-regulation abilities and their participation