The Effects of Therapeutic Camping on the Self-Esteem of Children with Severe Behavior Problems

Authors

  • Harve E Rawson
  • David McIntosh

Keywords:

SelfEsteem, Therapeutic Camping, Behavior Modifi·catifJ).n, Self Worth, Behavior Problems, "At Risk" Children

Abstract

Numerous studies have established the effectiveness of therapeutic camping programs on various aspects of a child's development. While several investigators have explored the specific area of self-esteem changes in non-camp situations, only one study to date has specifically studied self-esteem changes in a therapeuticcamp situation. We found no previous studies that had investigated self-esteem changes within a therapeutic camp with a sample composed of children with severe behavior problems, a group acknowledged to suffer from extremely low self-esteem. This study used the Culture-Free SelfEsteem Inventory for Children to measure self-esteem changes first on 33 boys between tbe ages of 10 and 12 enrolled in a IO-day residential therapeutic camping program for children exhjbiting severe behavior problems. The study was then replicated with another $lmple of the same age (N =·35) drawn randomly from the same referral population. Statistically significant increases in total self-esteem and academic self-esteem were observed in both the original sample and the replicated sample.

Published

1991-10-01

Issue

Section

Regular Papers