The effects of a rational-emotive affective education program for high-risk middle school students

This study investigated the effects of participation in a developmentally appropriate affective education program. The independent variable was the rational-emotive curriculum Thinking, Feeling, Behaving: An Emotional Education Curriculum for Adolescents (Vernon, 1989), and the dependent variables were self-concept measured with the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale and end-of-year report card grades. Twenty-three middle school students who were identified as high risk for dropping out prior to completion of high school and also as learning disabled or emotionally disturbed were randomly assigned to experimental (n = 12) and control (n = 11) conditions. Participants in the affective education group met for approximately 45 minutes a week for 15 weeks. Self-concept and grades did not differ between the two groups.