Mentalization and outdoor education: A pre-post intervention study

The high relevance of mentalization increasingly shows promise in pedagogical fields, to support the psychosocial development through specific interventions of mentalization. In view of the need for mentaliza­tion-based interventions, the present paper aims to develop a connection between outdoor education and mentalization-based education. Based on data, it discusses the potential of outdoor education to activate mentalization processes and possibly contribute to a change in mentalization ability in combination with reflective impulses. The research question addresses a sample consisting of 101 pupils from an outdoor educational intervention. As part of a quantitative pre-post design, changes in mentalization ability were confirmed using a multidimensional approach. While there was a significant increase in mentalizing the state of others at the second measurement point, the tendencies to mentalizing disorders decreased significantly. In summary – taking limitations into account – outdoor education thus proves to be a promising interven­tion that promotes mentalization.