Self-Compassion for Children and Caregivers (SCCC)

Nurturing Compassionate Responding Towards Oneself and Others Through the Caregiver-child Relationship

The Self-Compassion for Children and Caregivers Study aims to understand if an online course designed to help kids and their caregivers learn self-compassion is feasible, enjoyable, and helpful for well-being and relationships in families from diverse backgrounds. Children ages 8-11 who have a caregiver willing to participate with them will:

• Attend 2 in-person study visits (about 1-1.5 hour each) that includes

  • A survey for caregiver and child
  • A brief computer puzzle challengetask while heart rate and sweat is recorded (child)
  • A brief discussion about how the challenge went
• Participate in a 6-session, online self-compassion course with other families (see back)
• Provide feedback about how the course went

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Depression; Anxiety
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Self-Compassion for Children and Caregivers (SCCC)

Detailed Description

This pilot study examines the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary outcomes of the Self-Compassion for Children and Caregivers (SCCC) program. Twenty-four children ages 8-11 and a primary caregiver will be recruited from a racially diverse school community to participate in 6 1-hour group intervention sessions over 6 weeks. Feasibility and acceptability data will guide program refinements; pre and post assessments will explore dimensional changes in anxiety/depression symptoms as well as potential physiological, relational/behavioral changes associated with SCCC participation.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 25
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Wisconsin
    • Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 53705
      • University of Wisconsin

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria - English speaking:

• Youth between the ages of 8 and 11 years old
• Youth are currently attending an elementary school in the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD).
• Accompanied by a willing and able caregiver (e.g., parent, grandparent, legal guardian)
• Access to an internet-enabled device
• Both parent and youth participants must be able to read/write in English
• Meet threshold (T greater than 59) for clinically significant anxiety and/or depression from either parent- or youth-report of symptoms

Inclusion Criteria - Spanish speaking:

• Youth between the ages of 8 and 11 years old
• Accompanied by an eligible caregiver participant
• Safe access to a computer or mobile device that can connect to the internet
• Visual acuity adequate to read text on a computer or mobile device
• Able to provide assent and complete surveys in Spanish

Exclusion Criteria - English speaking:

• Are unable to provide adequate informed consent and/or assent
• Parent or youth that is currently impaired by any medical condition that would prevent study participation
• Active self-reported psychotic disorder
• Current use of psychotropic medication is not exclusionary. However, certain medications that may impact physiology recordings may be excluded (e.g. those with direct impacts on the sympathetic nervous system). Exclusionary medications will be decided on a case-by-case basis, per discretion of the PI, a pediatric psychiatrist

Exclusion Criteria - Spanish speaking:

• Previous completion of a Mindfulness and Self-Compassion for children and Caregivers (MSC-CC) program

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Self-Compassion Intervention - English speaking	Behavioral: Self-Compassion for Children and Caregivers (SCCC); A standardized, manualized adaptation of the mindful self-compassion curriculum for adults, designed for online delivery. Dyads join a group video conference call along with other caregiver-child dyads and and up to two experienced SCCC facilitators. Sessions occur 1-hour per week for 6 weeks at a time convenient for the group.
Experimental: Self-Compassion Intervention - Spanish speaking	Behavioral: Self-Compassion for Children and Caregivers (SCCC); A standardized, manualized adaptation of the mindful self-compassion curriculum for adults, designed for online delivery. Dyads join a group video conference call along with other caregiver-child dyads and and up to two experienced SCCC facilitators. Sessions occur 1-hour per week for 6 weeks at a time convenient for the group.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in number of dyads in attendance each week	Feasibility and acceptability will be measured using attendance records each week of the program	Week 1 to week 6
Reasons for study attrition	Feasibility and acceptability will be assessed through reasons provided by dyads for leaving the program	Up to week 6
Fidelity to SCCC Curriculum	The SCCC Fidelity Checklist is a subjective checklist for evidence shown for an array of items covered during each session. No evidence, some evidence, and definite evidence are selected, with higher counts of definite evidence reflecting greater fidelity to the curriculum.	Through study completion, up to 2 years

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Wisconsin, Madison
• Collaborators: Mind & Life Institute
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Ryan Herringa, MD, PhD, University of Wisconsin, Madison

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): October 16, 2023
• Primary Completion (Actual): May 16, 2025
• Study Completion (Actual): May 16, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: April 3, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 17, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): April 18, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 3, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 2, 2025
• Last Verified: June 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Depression
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2023-0325; SMPH/PSYCHIATRY/PSYCHIATRY (Other Identifier: UW Madison); PEACEFP2022-9936264010 (Other Grant/Funding Number: Mind & Life Institute); Protocol Version 11/27/2024 (Other Identifier: UW Madison)

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No