SCIENCE DES ÉMOTIONS : Evaluation of a Psychosocial Skills Development Program for Middle School Students

Evaluation of the Impact of "Science Des Emotions", a Psychosocial Skills Development Program for Middle-School Students

The goal of this Quasi-experimental cluster randomized trial is:

• 1a. Primary purpose: to determine the feasibility of the "Science des Emotions" curriculum through a participatory and translational research methodology, involving educators in evaluating programme fidelity, acceptability, perceived usefulness, and overall experience through quantitative and qualitative measures.
• 1b. Primary purpose: to assess the feasibility of the "Science des Emotions" curriculum from students' perspectives, including feasibility, acceptability, perceived usefulness, and overall experience, using quantitative and qualitative measures.
• 1c. Primary purpose: to determine whether the "Science des Emotions" curriculum improves psychosocial skills, emotional awareness, and adaptive emotion regulation strategies among 6th- and 7th-grade students.
• 2a. Secondary purpose: to determine whether the programme affects peer relationships, perceived closeness with classmates, and problematic behaviours among students.
• 2b. Secondary purpose: to determine whether the programme improves classroom climate reported by educators.
• 2c. Secondary purpose: to determine whether the programme improves educators' psychosocial skills and emotional awareness.
• 2d. Secondary purpose: to examine whether improvements in emotional awareness mediate the effect of the programme on educators' psychosocial skills.
• 2e. Secondary purpose: to examine whether improvements in emotional awareness and adaptive emotion regulation mediate the effect of the programme on students' psychosocial skills.
• 2f. Secondary purpose: to explore moderating factors of programme effectiveness, including students' behavioural difficulties and socio-economic background.
• 2g. Secondary purpose: to evaluate programme implementation through session-level assessments of clarity, feasibility, satisfaction, and visual materials completed by educators after each session. Changes in knowledge related to emotions and emotion regulation will also be assessed among students and educators.

This analysis will support recommendations for large-scale implementation and public policy.

Participants

Educators and educational staff delivering the programme (n = 100) Students aged 10-13 participating in the programme (n = 2400)

Measures

Primary objectives

• Students (both arms) will complete psychosocial skills, emotion regulation, and emotional awareness measures at pre-test (t0), post-test (t1), and 5-month follow-up (t2).
• Students in the intervention arm will complete a post-programme questionnaire assessing satisfaction, perceived usefulness, and acceptability, and may participate in a semi-structured interview assessing feasibility, usefulness, and overall experience.
• Educators in the intervention arm will complete a post-programme questionnaire assessing implementation fidelity and perceived usefulness, and may participate in a semi-structured interview assessing acceptability, usefulness, and overall experience.

Secondary objectives

• Students (both arms) will complete peer relationship, perceived closeness, problematic behaviour, and socio-demographic measures.
• Educators (both arms) will complete classroom climate, psychosocial skills, emotional awareness, and knowledge questionnaires at t0, t1, and t2. Schools will also provide absenteeism and behavioural data.
• Students (both arms) will complete an ad hoc knowledge questionnaire at t0, t1, and t2.
• Educators in the intervention arm will complete session-level feasibility, clarity, and satisfaction measures after each session.

Study Overview

• Status: Active, not recruiting
• Conditions: Social Emotional Learning; Efficacy of Intervention; Feasibility Studies - Efficacy of Intervention Psychosocial Skills Learning
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Socio-emotional curriculum - Science des Emotions

Detailed Description

The "Science des Emotions" project is a school-based research initiative implemented in collaboration with middle schools across the Créteil district (suburb east of Paris, France), including 23 schools, of which 9 are REP/REP+ and 3 are located in QPV areas (French priority education areas identified based on socio-economic criteria). The main objective of this project is to enhance adolescents' psychosocial skills by developing a novel psychosocial learning program that can be integrated into regular school activities by teachers themselves. The program is designed to improve students' psychosocial skills by incorporating structured lessons on emotional awareness and emotion regulation into the school curriculum. The program is based on the Psychosocial Competencies (CPS) framework defined by Santé Publique France and focuses specifically on fostering emotional awareness and self-regulation, key protective factors for short- and long-term well-being and mental health, but also academic success and socio-professional integration A pilot randomized controlled trial has been designed to test the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of the "Science des Emotions" program. Schools will be randomized into two arms: the intervention arm (n=12) will implement the program during regular school hours, while the control arm (n=12) will continue their usual "vie de classe" activities (such as group discussions, reflection on classroom rules, conflict resolution, and collective problem-solving).

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 2500
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• France
  • Nanterre, France, 92001
    • Laboratoire Dysco

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Youth participants must meet all of the following criteria:

• Be enrolled in 6th or 7th grade in a school within the Créteil or Paris Districts
• Have parental authorization
• Provide written informed consent, as appropriate
• Be able to speak and understand French

Staff participants must meet all of the following criteria:

• Be part of the educational staff in a school within the Créteil or Paris Districts
• Provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

Youth participants:

• Students with diagnosed severe neurodevelopmental or psychiatric disorders preventing participation in mainstream classroom activities
• SEGPA students (specialized adapted general and vocational education sections)
• Allophone students (recent non-French-speaking arrivals)
• Deaf students

No student is excluded from participating in the "Science des Emotions program itself, nor from completing the questionnaires (unless parental authorization is missing). The exclusions apply only to data analysis, in order to avoid any form of stigmatization or perception of exclusion.

Staff participants : none

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: "Science des Emotions" Program Group; Participants in this arm receive the "Science des Émotions" socio-emotional learning curriculum during the study period.	Behavioral: Socio-emotional curriculum - Science des Emotions; The "Science des Émotions" program is a structured socio-emotional learning curriculum delivered through 8 sessions integrated into the "vie de classe" period.
No Intervention: Control Group; No Intervention: usual "vie de classe" activities, Waitlist Control Participants in this arm follow the standard curriculum with no additional activities during the study period. They will receive the "Science des Émotions" program the following academic year (waitlist-control design). In some schools, optional, on-demand sessions may be provided for staff at the end of the school year, focusing on adolescent development. These sessions are not part of the intervention tested.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Educators' Implementation Fidelity and Perceived Usefulness Assessed by a Study-Specific Questionnaire	Implementation fidelity and perceived usefulness will be assessed using a study-specific questionnaire completed by educators in the intervention arm.	Immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline).
Educators' Acceptability, Perceived Usefulness, and Overall Experience Assessed by Semi-Structured Interviews	Semi-structured interviews will be conducted with educators in the intervention arm at the end of program implementation to assess acceptability, perceived usefulness, and overall experience of the intervention.	Immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline).
Students' Satisfaction, Perceived Usefulness, and Acceptability Assessed by a Study-Specific Questionnaire	Implementation satisfaction, perceived usefulness and acceptability will be assessed using a study-specific questionnaire completed by students in the intervention arm.	Immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline).
Students' Faisability, Perceived Usefulness, and Overall Experience Assessed via Semi-Structured Interviews	Semi-structured interviews will be conducted with students in the intervention arm at the end of program implementation to assess acceptability, perceived usefulness, and overall experience of the intervention.	Immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline).
Student Psychosocial skills Assessed by the Psychosocial skills scale	The Psychosocial skills scale is a 17-item self-report questionnaire assessing psychosocial skills. For each item, students indicate how frequently the described situation applies to them using a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 ("never") to 4 ("always"). Mean scores are calculated for four dimensions: emotional competence, cognitive competence, social competence, and assertiveness. Higher scores indicate greater psychosocial skills.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months from baseline)
Students' Emotion Regulation Assessed by the Contextualized Emotion Regulation Survey for Adolescents (CERSA)	Situation 2 of the Contextualized Emotion Regulation Survey for Adolescents (CERSA) will assess emotion regulation in a hypothetical situation t (i.e., preparing an important oral presentation in class and feeling that they have forgotten what they had prepared just before presenting). Responses are rated on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("not at all like this") to 7 ("entirely like this"). Higher scores indicate greater emotion regulation in the given context.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months from baseline)
Students' Acceptance Assessed by the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ)	Acceptance capacity will be assessed using the Acceptance subscale of the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ). Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("almost never") to 5 ("almost always"). Higher scores indicate greater use of emotion regulation and acceptance strategies.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months from baseline)
Students' Emotional Awareness Assessed by the Emotion Awareness Questionnaire FR (EAQ)	The Emotion Awareness Questionnaire FR (EAQ) is a 30-item self-report questionnaire assessing emotional awareness in students. For each item, participants indicate the extent to which the described feeling or behavior applies to them using a 3-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("not true") to 3 ("true"), with 2 corresponding to ("sometimes true"). Higher scores indicate greater emotional awareness.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months from baseline)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Students' Peer Relationships Assessed by Peer Relationships subscale of the the Psychological Sense of School Membership - FR (PSSM)	The Peer Relationships subscale of the French version of the Psychological Sense of School Membership (PSSM) includes 5 items rated on a 3-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("not true") to 3 ("very true"), with an intermediate option of ("somewhat true"). Higher scores indicate stronger perceived peer relationships.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months after baseline).
Students' Perceived Closeness with Classmates Assessed by the Inclusion of Other in the Self (IOS) Scale	Perceived closeness with peers will be assessed using the Inclusion of Other in the Self (IOS; Aron et al., 1992) scale, a pictorial measure consisting of 7 overlapping circles representing increasing levels of closeness, ranging from 1 (least close) to 7 (most close)	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months after baseline).
Problematic Behaviors in Students Assessed by the Conduct Problems Subscale of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire FR (SDQ)	The Conduct Problems subscale of the French version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is a 5-item self-report measure assessing behavioral difficulties in students. Items are rated on a 3-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("not true") to 3 ("certainly true"), with an intermediate response option of ("somewhat true"). Higher scores indicate greater behavioral difficulties and problematic behaviors.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months after baseline).
Classroom Climate Quality Perceived by Educators Assessed by the Classroom Climate Quality Scale (French Version)	Classroom Climate Quality Scale (French Version) is a 25-item self-report questionnaire assessing educators' perceptions of classroom climate quality. Items are rated on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("not at all like this") to 7 ("entirely like this"). Higher scores indicate a more positive perceived classroom climate	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months from baseline)
Educators Psychosocial skills Assessed by the Pyschosocial Skill Scale	The Pyschosocial Skill Scale is a 15-item self-report questionnaire assessing psychosocial skills. For each item, educators indicate how frequently the described situation applies to them using a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 ("never") to 4 ("always"). Mean scores are calculated for four dimensions: emotional competence, cognitive competence, social competence, and assertiveness. Higher scores indicate greater psychosocial skills.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months from baseline)
Emotional Awareness in Educators Assessed by the Emotion Expression and Emotion Perception Subscales of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue)	To assess emotional awareness, the Emotion Perception and Emotion Expression subscales of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue) will be used. These self-report subscales each include 10 items rated on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("completely disagree") to 7 ("completely agree"). Mean scores are calculated for each subscale, with higher scores indicating greater emotional perception and emotional expression abilities.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months from baseline)
Students' Sociodemographic Variables Assessed by a Study-Specific Questionnaire	Students in both the intervention and usual programming arms will report sociodemographic information using a study-specific questionnaire. Variables include age, gender, language spoken at home, and parents' occupations.	Baseline
Educators' Sociodemographic Variables Assessed by a Study-Specific Questionnaire	Educators in both the intervention and usual programming arms will report sociodemographic and professional information using a study-specific questionnaire. Variables include age, gender, employment status (permanent, contractual, or other), number of years teaching in middle school, and previous training related to socio-emotional skills.	Baseline
Students' Knowledge About Emotions Assessed by a Study-Specific Questionnaire	A 10-item study-specific questionnaire will assess students' knowledge related to emotions addressed in the program . The questionnaire is administered in a multiple-choice quiz format with five response options, including one "I don't know" option. Higher scores indicate greater knowledge about emotions.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months after baseline).
Educators' Knowledge About Emotions Assessed by a Study-Specific Questionnaire	A 14-item study-specific questionnaire will assess educators' knowledge related to emotions addressed in the program . The questionnaire is administered in a multiple-choice quiz format with five response options, including one "I don't know" option. Higher scores indicate greater knowledge about emotions.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline), and 5 months post-intervention (approximately 13 months after baseline).
Absenteeism and behavioral incidents	Data are provided by the school in both intervention and usual programming arms at immediate post-test and 5-month follow-up.	Baseline, immediately post-intervention (approximately 8 months after baseline),

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Educators' Perceived Clarity, Satisfaction, and Feasibility Assessed by a Study-Specific Questionnaire	A study-specific questionnaire will assess educators' perceptions of session clarity, students' understanding, classroom climate, feasibility within the allotted time (too short, adequate, or too long), and overall satisfaction with each session. Educators in the intervention arm will complete the questionnaire after each session.	Immediately after each intervention session, up to 8 month

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University Paris 8 Vincennes Saint Denis
• Collaborators: Paris Nanterre University; Observatoire des compétences psychosociales et du Bien-être en contextes Educatifs (OBE)
• Investigators: Study Director: Marianne Habib, Associate Professor, Université Paris 8, DysCo Lab; Study Director: Charlotte Pinabiaux, Professor, Université Paris Nanterre, DysCo Lab; Principal Investigator: Sophia Vorontsov, PhD Student, Université Paris 8, DysCo Lab

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Durlak JA, Weissberg RP, Dymnicki AB, Taylor RD, Schellinger KB. The impact of enhancing students' social and emotional learning: a meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Dev. 2011 Jan-Feb;82(1):405-32. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x.
• Tessier, D., et al. (in preparation). Échelle des compétences psychosociales (CPS). Manuscript in preparation.
• St-Amand, J., Boily, R., Bowen, F., Smith, J., Janosz, M., & Verner-Filion, J. (2020). The development of the French version of the Psychological Sense of School Membership (PSSM) questionnaire: An analysis of its structure, properties and potential for research with at-risk students. Interdisciplinary Education and Psychology, 2(3), 3.
• Silvers JA. Adolescence as a pivotal period for emotion regulation development. Curr Opin Psychol. 2022 Apr;44:258-263. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.09.023. Epub 2021 Oct 9.
• Shojaei T, Wazana A, Pitrou I, Kovess V. The strengths and difficulties questionnaire: validation study in French school-aged children and cross-cultural comparisons. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2009 Sep;44(9):740-7. doi: 10.1007/s00127-008-0489-8. Epub 2008 Dec 19.
• Lenoir, L., et al. (in preparation). Échelle des compétences psychosociales (CPS). Manuscript in preparation.
• Lahaye M, Luminet O, Van Broeck N, Bodart E, Mikolajczak M. Psychometric properties of the emotion awareness questionnaire for children in a French-speaking population. J Pers Assess. 2010 Jul;92(4):317-26. doi: 10.1080/00223891.2010.482003.
• Fombouchet, Y., Pineau, S., Perchec, C., Lucenet, J., & Lannegrand, L. (2023). The development of emotion regulation in adolescence : What do we know and where to go next? Social Development, 32(4), 1227-1242. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12684
• Fombouchet Y, Lannegrand L, Lucenet J. The Contextualized Emotion Regulation Survey for Adolescents (CERSA): How does emotion regulation vary according to context? Br J Dev Psychol. 2023 Sep;41(3):306-323. doi: 10.1111/bjdp.12450. Epub 2023 Apr 12.
• d'Acremont M, Van der Linden M. How is impulsivity related to depression in adolescence? Evidence from a French validation of the cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire. J Adolesc. 2007 Apr;30(2):271-82. doi: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2006.02.007. Epub 2006 Apr 4.
• Cipriano C, Strambler MJ, Naples LH, Ha C, Kirk M, Wood M, Sehgal K, Zieher AK, Eveleigh A, McCarthy M, Funaro M, Ponnock A, Chow JC, Durlak J. The state of evidence for social and emotional learning: A contemporary meta-analysis of universal school-based SEL interventions. Child Dev. 2023 Sep-Oct;94(5):1181-1204. doi: 10.1111/cdev.13968. Epub 2023 Jul 13.
• Black, A. E., & Deci, E. L. (2000). The effects of instructors' autonomy support and students' autonomous motivation on learning organic chemistry: A self-determination theory perspective. Science education, 84(6), 740-756.Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS).
• Aron, A., Aron, E. N., & Smollan, D. (1992). Inclusion of other in the self scale and the structure of interpersonal closeness.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 63(4), 596-612.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 1, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 20, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 20, 2027

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 18, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 29, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): July 7, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 7, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 29, 2026
• Last Verified: June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: middle school; School intervention; Social Emotional Learning; efficacy of intervention; psychosocial competencies
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2025-12-7

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No