Social interactions are laden with emotionally charged information and individuals who lack emotional intelligence skills can have difficulty negotiating interpersonal situations. For children, limited emotional intelligence impacts their social relationships with the peer group and can result in negative social experiences. Decades of research in developmental psychopathology support the significant and unique contribution of social problems in the emergence of negative outcomes, including risk for mental health problems. Research shows that emotional intelligence skills can be targeted and bolstered through group interventions and that interventions are enhanced when training extends to multiple settings (e.g., intervention setting and home) and practice outside of the treatment sessions is included.

During the Phase I project, the prototype for Insight! was developed and tested for feasibility within three targeted markets: school- and community-based mental health professionals and elementary school teachers. Skill acquisition and product feasibility were also tested with parents and children. Product feasibility was successfully established and Phase I results provided substantial support for continued development. 

This Phase II project utilized Phase I findings to revise, modify, and extend intervention components to maximize quality and effectiveness.  The resulting program for emotional intelligence training was titled, Emotional Literacy in the Classroom (ELC). ELC offers multimedia resources and a skill-based curriculum specifically aimed at enhancing emotional intelligence competencies in 5 to 7 year olds. ELC also provides a unique means of bridging the intervention setting with home efforts to promote emotional and social functioning of children. A scientific evaluation of the efficacy of the intervention was conducted to assess skill acquisition and emotional, social, and behavioral functioning. Results indicated that the ELC curriculum was effective for increasing children’s emotional knowledge when implemented as part of the regular education curriculum for Kindergarten through second grade classrooms.  Use of ELC had a significant impact on children’s ability to recognize emotions in themselves and in others, a skill that is considered essential for regulating emotions.

The ELC program is currently available for purchase through www.selmediainc.com.