Effectiveness, Applications and Limitations of the Program Friends in Pre-School Children: An Integrative Revision

Abstract

The interest in early preventive interventions based on scientific evidence, such as the FRIENDS Program, has grown in recent years as research has shown the emergence of anxiety symptoms in children under 5 years, and additionally that early detection and intervention reduces and/or prevents the damage caused by anxiety disorders. This article focuses on carrying out an integrative review on the effectiveness, applications and limitations of the use of the FRIENDS Program in preschool children. Sources utilized included publications from 2000 to 2016. The databases of Google Scholar, PubMed, Psyinfo and the FRIENDS platform were verified. Nine articles were selected. The results and analysis showed that, for most of the studies analyzed, prevention is the focus and that to achieve effectiveness for participants, there should be a critical selection of the instruments applied. The school system was the preferred place for the application of prevention projects, but the training of teachers is a key factor for the applicability and reproduction of the protocol. In order for the use of the FRIENDS Program to be universalized for preschool children, more studies are needed.