Kazuyo Watanabe1,2, Aya Goto3, Kayoko Ishii4, Hiromi Yoshida-Komiya5, Shinya Ito6, Misao Ota2. 1. International Community Health, Fukushima Medical University Graduate School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan. 2. Preparing Section for School of Midwifery, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan. 3. Center for Integrated Science and Humanities, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan. 4. Department of Midwifery and Maternal Nursing, Fukushima Medical University School of Nursing, Fukushima, Japan. 5. Center for Gender Specific Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan. 6. Kitasato University School of Nursing, Kanagawa, Japan.
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: The Australian "empathy session," which is a parenting program aimed at alleviating postpartum depression by increasing empathy among expecting couples, was adapted to a life-planning education program for Japanese high school students. In this present study, we aimed to assess changes in high school students' empathy levels. METHODS: A nonrandomized, controlled, waitlist intervention was performed in 210 first-year students. They were divided into intervention and waitlist control groups. The life-planning lecture consisted of two parts: (1) reproductive health and (2) empathy and communication skills. The main outcome indicator was the Perspective-Taking subscale of an empathy index. Logistic regression was used to examine the association between the intervention and change in the Perspective-Taking scale score controlling for background factors. RESULTS: As per our findings, a significant difference was noted in the scale scores of Perspective-Taking before and after the program within the intervention group (3.76 ± 0.61 before the lecture and 3.86 ± 0.64 after the lecture; P = 0.01). In the between-group analysis, the likelihood of an increase in the scale score of Perspective-Taking was significantly higher in the intervention group (OR = 2.29, 95 % confidence interval = 1.23-4.26). CONCLUSIONS: Japanese high school students' Perspective-Taking improved through learning reproductive life-planning and communication skills.
INTRODUCTION: The Australian "empathy session," which is a parenting program aimed at alleviating postpartum depression by increasing empathy among expecting couples, was adapted to a life-planning education program for Japanese high school students. In this present study, we aimed to assess changes in high school students' empathy levels. METHODS: A nonrandomized, controlled, waitlist intervention was performed in 210 first-year students. They were divided into intervention and waitlist control groups. The life-planning lecture consisted of two parts: (1) reproductive health and (2) empathy and communication skills. The main outcome indicator was the Perspective-Taking subscale of an empathy index. Logistic regression was used to examine the association between the intervention and change in the Perspective-Taking scale score controlling for background factors. RESULTS: As per our findings, a significant difference was noted in the scale scores of Perspective-Taking before and after the program within the intervention group (3.76 ± 0.61 before the lecture and 3.86 ± 0.64 after the lecture; P = 0.01). In the between-group analysis, the likelihood of an increase in the scale score of Perspective-Taking was significantly higher in the intervention group (OR = 2.29, 95 % confidence interval = 1.23-4.26). CONCLUSIONS: Japanese high school students' Perspective-Taking improved through learning reproductive life-planning and communication skills.
Authors: Kayoko Ishii; Aya Goto; Kazuyo Watanabe; Hiroshi Tsutomi; Mie Sasaki; Hiromi Komiya; Seiji Yasumura Journal: Health Care Women Int Date: 2019-07-23