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Fostering Resilience: a Pilot Study for Mindful Yoga As an Intervention for Adolescents Exposed to Chronic Adversity

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Fostering Resilience: a Pilot Study for Mindful Yoga As an Intervention for Adolescents Exposed to Chronic Adversity National Louis University Digital Commons@NLU Dissertations 9-2020 Fostering Resilience: A Pilot Study for Mindful Yoga as an Intervention for Adolescents Exposed to Chronic Adversity Michele Pinellas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss Part of the Counselor Education Commons, and the Other Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons Recommended Citation Pinellas, Michele, "Fostering Resilience: A Pilot Study for Mindful Yoga as an Intervention for Adolescents Exposed to Chronic Adversity" (2020). Dissertations. 515. https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss/515 This Dissertation - Public Access is brought to you for free and open access by Digital Commons@NLU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons@NLU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. National Louis University Fostering Resilience: A Pilot Study for Mindful Yoga as an Intervention for Adolescents Exposed to Chronic Adversity by Michele E. Pinellas A dissertation presented to the Faculty of the School of National-Louis University, in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Education September 2020 2 Fostering Resilience: A Pilot Study for Mindful Yoga as an Intervention for Adolescents Exposed to Chronic Adversity Copyright © 2020 By Michele E. Pinellas 3 National Louis University College of Professional Studies and Advancement Tampa, FL This dissertation written by Michele E. Pinellas, under the direction of the Dissertation Committee, is approved and accepted by all committee members, in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. September 13, 2020 ____________________________________ Date Dissertation Committee ____________________________________ Caroline Perjessy, Ph.D., Committee Chair ____________________________________ Carla Stewart, Ed.D., Committee Member 4 Fostering Resilience: A Pilot Study for Mindful Yoga as an Intervention for Adolescents Exposed to Chronic Adversity ABSTRACT The effects of ongoing stress can cause chronic affect dysregulation, destructive behavior against self and others, learning disabilities, dissociative problems, somatization, and distortions in concepts about self and others (Bessel van der Kolk, 1994, p. 259). There may be particular benefits for youth who live in urban, underserved populations as they have experienced social challenges such as poverty, violence, drugs, racism, and immigration. Given the historical tendency of youth to express their emotions externally as a coping strategy, there is rationale to support a physically based treatment, like yoga, as an intervention for this population (Beltran et al., 2016). This study explores using yoga to build resilience as a mindfulness-based intervention for children who have experienced chronic adversity, particularly for students living in underserved communities. The primary research questions for this mixed methods study are (R1): Does mindfulness-based yoga improve adolescents’ perception of their ability to emotionally self-regulate; and (R2): How does mindfulness-based yoga improve adolescents’ perception of their ability to self-regulate? This mixed-methods study used the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the Positive Affect and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS-C) as a pre-post methodology, interview methods, along with application of the spiritual capitol theory, to examine the effectiveness of yoga as an intervention for increased emotion regulation for underserved, minority school settings. Adolescents (n = 12) participated in an eight-session, four-week pilot yoga intervention that targeted increasing resilience as evidence by perceived stress and emotion regulation. 5 There was not a statistically significant difference from pre to post yoga program despite the decrease in participants’ perceived stress (t (11) = .114; p >.05). Overall, participants scored higher before the yoga program on the perceived stress measure (M = 17.58, SD = 3.370) but decreased once the program concluded (M = 15.50, SD = 4.583). Positive affect was not statistically significant although the scores increased from before to after the yoga program (t (11) = .276; p >.05). Despite this trend, students scored lower before the yoga program on positive affect (M = 39.25, SD = 10.515) and trended towards significant increase after the program (M = 42.25, SD =8.001). There was a statistically significant difference from the pre to post yoga program for negative affect (t (11) = .029; p <.05] experienced by the participants. Overall, the students scored higher before the yoga program (M = 30.75, SD = 9.265) and significantly decreased after the program (M = 25.25, SD =8.740) indicating a reduction in negative affect. Despite limited statistical significance, the participants expressed positive experiences, increased emotion regulation, and reduced stress. These are significant outcomes for adolescents who have experienced chronic adversity to build resilience. Yoga, in school settings, has many implications to include fostering the development of resilience for children who have experienced chronic adversity. Future researchers may work towards understanding how yoga strengthens resilience among increased sample sizes within the same target population. Keywords Yoga, Adolescents, Emotion Regulation, Perceived Stress, Resilience 6 DEDICATION I dedicate this completed dissertation to my students of the past, present, and future. May my endeavors give you an example and representation of what pursuing your life’s passion resembles. It is my hope that my pursuits inspire and drive you to find what you love most in life and go after it wholeheartedly. 7 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Lord, what you have given me, I give back to you. Each accomplishment and milestone was your work manifested through the vessel of my body. Thank you, Jesus, for your infallible love. To my loving husband, Terrell Pinellas: Thank you for believing in me and for supporting me in all of my endeavors no matter how lofty. Your love and steadfastness are truly appreciated and admired. I love you. To my children, Marcell, Terrell Jr. and Sevyn: You are the best gift I have ever received. Whatever you put your mind to, you can indeed accomplish. Keep God first, love endlessly, and always do your best. I love you with my whole heart! To my mother, Gloria Satterfield: I love you and I strive to be the dynamic woman of character that you are. Thank you for your continuous love, unending support, and for being my number one fan. God broke the mold with you. You are simply amazing. To my father, Rev. Michael Askew: Thank you for always being there no matter the call. I love and appreciate the man that you are. I am blessed to have you. To my Chair and Committee: Thank you for pushing me to intellectual heights that I did not believe could be true of myself. Your guidance throughout this journey has been incomparable and for that I owe a lifetime of gratitude. To my participants: I truly thank and appreciate each and every one of you for without your contribution, this milestone would not be possible. 8 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter One: Introduction ............................................................................................................ 12 Background of the Study ........................................................................................................ 13 Problem Statement .................................................................................................................. 14 Purpose of Study ..................................................................................................................... 16 Research Question(s) .............................................................................................................. 17 Assumptions to the Study ....................................................................................................... 18 Definition of Terms................................................................................................................. 19 Summary ................................................................................................................................. 19 Chapter Two: Literature Review .................................................................................................. 21 Purpose Statement ................................................................................................................... 21 Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................................... 22 Spiritual Capital ................................................................................................................ 22 Review of Literature ............................................................................................................... 25 Title 1 School Settings ...................................................................................................... 25 Environmental Stress ........................................................................................................ 26 Stress in Adolescence ....................................................................................................... 27 Psychological impacts of adverse experiences ........................................................... 30 Physiological impacts of adverse experiences ............................................................ 31 Emotional Affect Regulation
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