Ana Maria Ribeiro-Pereira, Diana Sousa, Bruna Paulino & Ana Isabel Pereira
The present study analyzed the engagement of caregivers and children in a child-centered cognitive-behavioural intervention for emotional disorders. A semi-structured interview was used to collect data from a sample of 17 Portuguese caregivers from 12 families of school-aged children that participated in a group cognitive-behavioural intervention (child-centered version of the Unified Protocol for the Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders in Children). Data was analyzed using content analysis. It was possible to identify facilitators (e.g., motivation, practical reasons) and barriers (e.g., practical reasons, characteristics of the tasks) to caregivers’ engagement regarding in and out-of-session activities. Similarly, from the caregivers’ report, we identified facilitators (e.g., therapeutic alliance, contingencies) and barriers (e.g., children’s characteristics, characteristics of the tasks) to children’s engagement in the sessions and with home tasks. These results suggest important factors to consider in the context of child-centered group psychological interventions for emotional disorders.
