Enhancing prosocial behaviors, reducing aggression: Effects of CEPIDEAS junior in primary school

Prosocial behavior is crucial for positive development, protecting against negative outcomes throughout childhood and adolescence. The CEPIDEAS Junior program (Emotional and Prosocial Competence: An Idea for School) is a school-based intervention based on Social Cognitive Theory, which promotes prosocial behaviors in primary school by integrating its contents into the regular curriculum. Adopting a quasi-experimental design, this study evaluated the effects of the program on prosocial and aggressive behaviors among N = 858 primary school children (381 girls, M = 8.46 years). The intervention group included 435 children (198 girls, M = 8.44 years), while the control group had 423 children (183 girls, M = 8.49 years). Using teacher ratings and self-reports, the results of two bivariate Latent Difference Score models showed the positive impact of the program on prosocial and aggressive behaviors. These results confirm the efficacy of the CEPIDEAS Junior demonstrating the benefits of integrating prosocial into the school curriculum. • CEPIDEAS Junior program promotes prosocial behaviors in primary school children. • The CEPIDEAS Junior efficacy was evaluated with the Latent Difference Score model. • CEPIDEAS Junior program contributed to increasing prosocial behaviors. • CEPIDEAS Junior program contributed to a decrease in aggressive behaviors. • The effects on prosocial behaviors sustained a reduction in aggressive behaviors.