Social emotional learning and autonomic regulation enhance social connectedness in female adolescents with extensive exposure to adverse childhood experiences

Abstract

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are associated with social isolation, a known contributor to diminishing mental health with consequences for adolescent development. We evaluated effects of the SKY Schools program, which combines social emotional learning (SEL) with training in autonomic regulation (breathwork), on social connectedness (SC) in female Latinx adolescents with high ACEs, a group particularly vulnerable to ACEs effects. In this longitudinal study, female Latinx students ( N  = 174, 14–18 years; M = 14.97; SD = 0.97) in two Southern California high schools with high (≥4) and low (<4) ACEs either completed the four‐week SKY Schools program plus 8 weeks of daily breathwork or underwent their usual physical education curriculum (control). We administered the Social Connectedness Scale before and after the program and again after 8 weeks. Relative to baseline, the high ACEs intervention group showed increased SC (7%) after daily breathwork compared with the control groups (low ACEs: 3%, high ACEs: −3%) and the low ACEs intervention group (−3%) ( p  < .01). Biopsychosocial programs that combine SEL and breathwork can reduce feelings of social isolation in socially vulnerable Latinx female adolescents, facilitating healthy adolescent development.