Supporting Social Interaction in Early Childhood with Mindfulness-Based Activities
Tonga Çabuk F. E., Bozkurt R.(Yürütücü), Kaplan Z., Fidan E., Oğuz B.
Yükseköğretim Kurumları Destekli Proje, Üniversite Destekli Diğer Projeler, 2026 - 2026
- Proje Türü: Yükseköğretim Kurumları Destekli Proje
- Destek Programı: Üniversite Destekli Diğer Projeler
- Başlama Tarihi: Mart 2026
- Bitiş Tarihi: Temmuz 2026
Proje Özeti
Social-emotional skills acquired during early childhood period, such as sharing, turn-taking, cooperation, conflict resolution, and emotional regulation, impact children's lives in a wide range of ways, from later academic success to social adaptation (Denham et al., 2012). In recent years, scientific evidence has increased that mindfulness-based practices have positive effects on these skills (Zelazo & Lyons, 2012; Flook et al., 2015; Makosz & Schussler, 2020). However, a review of national and international literature reveals that intervention programs specifically targeting early childhood children living in disadvantaged areas, designed holistically and integrating mindfulness components focused on breathing, movement, sensory, and emotion, are extremely limited. This project aims to examine the impact of an eight-week holistic intervention program consisting of mindfulness-based breathing, movement, sensory, and emotion-focused activities on the social interaction behaviors and emotional regulation processes of 5-6 year-old children attending a socioeconomically disadvantaged area using a qualitative research design. The eight-week intervention program is structured by implementing a mindfulness activity immediately before free play each week, allowing for direct observation of how the activities impact children's natural play behaviors. This approach, consistent with Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems theory, allows for the examination of behaviors in the child's most natural interactional setting and strengthens the ecological validity of the study. The research involved data obtained from multiple sources, including the completion of structured observation forms during free play, the keeping of anecdotal records, the compilation of researcher field notes, the creation of children's portfolios (photographs, short child statements, visual artifacts), and the collection of family assessment forms via Google Forms. Storing data in an organized, secure, and historically traceable manner through a digital portfolio system ensures an innovative and sustainable structure for the research in terms of technology integration. This digital system both maintains data integrity and strengthens family-school-researcher communication. All collected data will be analyzed using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006). Visual data, such as photographs and videos, included in the digital portfolios will be supplemented with content analysis. At the end of the project, we expect to see an increase in children's cooperative play time, a decrease in conflict escalation, increased peer-initiating behaviors, more frequent use of breathing and body awareness strategies in emotional distress, and improved time to return to play. Family assessments and teacher observations might also indicate findings such as calmer communication in children's daily lives, increased ability to recognize and express emotions, and positive changes in sibling relationships. Following the completion of the project, a half-day ""Results Sharing and Mindfulness Workshop"" will be held at TED University, where the findings will be shared with teachers, administrators, and prospective teachers. In conclusion, the project fills a significant gap given the limited number of mindfulness-focused studies conducted with disadvantaged children. It offers an innovative and high-impact contribution to the literature with its tracking of social behaviors within the context of natural play, a technology-integrated data management system, and a holistic mindfulness approach.