Promoting Social-Emotional Competencies Through Mindfulness in Primary Education

The Sentir@Ser Program

Bibliographic Data

ID22044641
AuthorsAna Salomé de Jesus (Instituto Universitario de Ciencias de la Educación, Universidad de Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain), Ana Salomé Jesus (Universidad de Salamanca), Luísa Carvalho (0000-0002-9004-1134, University of Évora), Luisa Maria Serrano De Carvalho (0000-0001-6095-6010, School of Education and Social Sciences, Portalegre Polytechnic University, Praça do Município, 11, 7300-110 Portalegre, Portugal), Ricardo Pocinho (0000-0003-1307-5434, Instituto Politécnico de Leiria), Cristóvão Adelino Fonseca Franco Ribeiro Margarido (0000-0002-2479-5114, Instituto Politécnico de Leiria), Eva María Torrecilla Sánchez (0000-0001-9184-8442, Universidad de Salamanca)
Year2026
Volume16
Issue5
Pages759
Publication date2026-05-11
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEducation Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2227-7102 • E-ISSN: 2227-7102
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/educsci16050759
OpenAlexW7162101971
LanguageEN
References cited45

The development of social-emotional competencies in children is increasingly important for helping them respond to the demands of contemporary society, and recent research has also highlighted its association with academic performance. In this context, mindfulness has emerged as a valuable approach to fostering these competencies. Given its well-documented benefits, mindfulness has also attracted growing interest in educational settings. This article presents findings from a doctoral study conducted in Portugal, in which the Sentir@Ser program, designed to promote social-emotional competencies through mindfulness practices, was developed, implemented, and evaluated. The study addressed the following research question: What are the effects of a program designed to promote social-emotional competencies through mindfulness practices on primary school students’ levels of affect, self-compassion, and mindfulness-related competencies, and how do these effects vary according to gender, grade level, and family structure? A total of 72 students, from first to fourth grade, participated in the study. Pre- and post-intervention assessments examined affect, self-compassion, and mindfulness-related competencies. The results showed overall improvements across the assessed domains following the intervention, with no significant differences according to gender, grade level, or family structure. These findings suggest that the Sentir@Ser program may be a useful approach to promoting students’ social-emotional competencies. However, further research is needed to optimize its effectiveness and impact

Metacognition · Mindfulness · Program evaluation · Self-efficacy · Emotional Intelligence and Performance · Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions · Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction

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Open DOIOpen Access