Feasibility and acceptability of implementing the skills program, a group behavioral activation treatment for schools

Anxiety and depression have been found to be highly comorbid and among the most commonly diagnosed disorders in youth. Research indicates that these disorders are generally left untreated, which increases risk for greater impairment and a longer course of psychological dysfunction. Cognitive behavioral therapy has been shown to be effective in treating youth internalizing problems, but most treatment manuals have focused on a single disorder. Transdiagnostic treatments, which focus on commonalities among disorders, may be more relevant to treating internalizing problems than standard treatment manuals. In particular, Behavioral Activation, which has been found to be a key ingredient in the treatment of depression, shows promise as a transdiagnostic treatment because of its parallel goals with exposure-based therapies for anxiety. Implementing these treatments in a school-based setting may serve to reduce the barriers to treatment and increase the number of youth receiving services for internalizing disorders. Before a treatment can be implemented in a school, a variety of acceptability and feasibility issues must first be assessed. The focus of the current study was to obtain feedback from a range of potential providers on the feasibility and acceptability of implementing a group behavioral activation treatment (GBAT), known as the SKILLS Program, in middle schools with children who have elevated levels of anxiety and/or depression. Eighteen professionals participated in the current study. Overall ratings indicated highly positive impressions of the therapist manual and workbook, and all subscales related to acceptability received close to maximum ratings. Feasibility ratings were routinely lower, indicating that respondents found that the time allotted for tasks may have been less than desirable and that some of the assigned tasks may have been challenging to accomplish in school settings. However, ratings were still above the midpoint rating, suggesting that respondents found the program overall feasible. Despite potential challenges, individual professionals felt positive about the implementation potential of GBAT. Discussion focuses on implications of study findings, potential ways to increase feasibility, further examination of open-ended feedback, as well as limitations of the study and suggestions for future research.Psy.D.Includes bibliographical referencesby Margaret Areizag