Group therapy on unhelpful thoughts may help students put off less

The study

1. 01

   Who took part

   64 university students training to teach physics, chemistry or mathematics in Enugu State, Nigeria. All showed signs of putting off their studies. Most were aged 20 to 30.

2. 02

   What they did

   Students in the therapy group met for 90-minute sessions, twice a week for six weeks. The sessions taught how putting off works and how to challenge unhelpful thoughts. The other group had no sessions.

3. 03

   What happened

   At the end, the therapy group put off their studies less than the other group did. Two months later, the gap was still there. The paper's numbers do not add up in places, so treat the size of the gap with care.

What the study found

1. Helped

   Students who had group therapy on putting off and unhelpful thoughts put off less than those with no sessions.

   • Action: Challenge unhelpful thoughtstested
   • Action: Learn how the problem workstested
   • Rule: Practise with a groupused

   Small randomised trial of 64 university students who put off their studies · vs students who had no sessions · they rated themselves · ⚠ numbers unreliable; results look too good to be true

Source