Awareness of personal capacities and academic performance in the implementation of a psychoeducational program

Abstract

The improvement of the educational experience of minors and the development of personal skills reduce the risk of child labor. In this study we assess the impact of a psychoeducational intervention for the prevention of child labor in two neighborhoods in the periphery of Lima. With a pretest-posttest design, we evaluate the changes in self-esteem, self-efficacy, social skills, school attendance and academic performance of 48 students between 8 and 13 years old (M=10.38, SD=1.22). The results showed an improvement in perceived self-esteem and a decrease in social self-efficacy and social skills selfreport. The qualitative evaluation of the perception of changes by students, parents and teachers demonstrated improvements in the socio-affective development of the participants. The evaluation of the program implies the existence of a process of awareness of the personal abilities of the participants, together with small improvements in the academic field that can have an indirect impact on the risk of child labor.