THE EFFECTS OF GETTING UNSTRESSED (GUSTM), A WHOLISTIC MULTI-MODAL PROGRAM, ON ADOLESCENTS' WELL-BEING

Abstract

This study examined the effects of a wholistic multi-modal program on the well-being of adolescents, aged thirteen to nineteen. The program was designed to manage and reduce stress in a self-directed format, with a selection of specific techniques that addressed the teenagers' self-concept and their experiences of anxiety, and to provide tools to assist in decision-making. The dependent measures used included the StateTrait Anxiety Inventoty (STAI) , the Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale (NS), and the Self-Description Questionnaire II (SDQ II). The experimental design was a pre-test!post-test with a control group. The independent variable was constructed as a one-day, eight-hour workshop in which all 72 adolescent research subjects participated. The wholistic multi-modal program intervention yielded statistically significant differences for the treatment group (p < .05), lowering state anxieties. Findings also indicate statistically significant improvements (p < .01) in the Total Self-Concept scores of the adolescents, as well as in two of the eleven sub-scales. The results provided evidence of a shift towards a more internal locus of control (p < .01). No statistically significant differences were found for the trait anxiety levels of the treatment group, nor between the treatment and control groups.