The Effectiveness of a Self-Empowerment Opportunities Program in Reducing Anxiety Symptoms and Mindfulness Among Preparatory School Students

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the effectiveness of a self-empowerment opportunities program in reducing anxiety symptoms and mindfulness among preparatory school students in Baghdad. To achieve this aim, a self-empowerment opportunities program was designed to reduce anxiety symptoms and increase mindfulness, based on Bandura's social learning theory. Using the General Anxiety and Mindfulness Scales, and employing an experimental design with a stratified random sample of 400 students from secondary schools in Baghdad, 60 students were identified as exhibiting low levels of mindfulness and high levels of anxiety based on their responses to the scales. These 60 students were divided into two groups: an experimental group (which participated in the Empowerment Opportunities Building Program) and a control group that did not participate in the experiment. After confirming the equivalence of the two groups, the program was implemented with the experimental group. The study results indicated the effectiveness of the Empowerment Opportunities Building Program in reducing anxiety symptoms and increasing mindfulness. The research recommends training educational counselors and teachers on empowerment strategies and mindfulness development to ensure the effective implementation of these programs within the school environment.