Dr Marg’s Research
Dr Marg’s PhD research was completed in 2020 through Charles Darwin University. The title of Margaret’s thesis is The Tapping Project: Introducing Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) to reduce anxiety and improve wellbeing in primary school students.
Four schools across the Darwin, Palmerston and rural districts participated in a research study called The Tapping Project.
The project investigated whether the use of Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), or Tapping, is an effective intervention for reducing anxiety and improving wellbeing in Year 5-6 students. Data collection involved quantitative and qualitative methods and included both student and teacher perceptions about their experiences of using tapping. Results of the study found that EFT is an effective treatment for primary school students. You can access the thesis by clicking on this link https://doi.org/10.25913/78ra-3a33
An article about The Tapping Project has also been published in the Australian Journal of Teacher Education. The article is titled Emotional Freedom Techniques (Tapping) to Improve Wellbeing and Reduce Anxiety in Primary School Classrooms, and you can find the article at https://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol47/iss3/5/
It is concerning that anxiety is being experienced by young people at rising rates of prevalence. The Tapping Project was conducted to help find ways to support student wellbeing through teaching students and teachers some simple techniques that can be used in and outside of the classroom. EFT involves individuals tapping gently on points on the body whilst saying a statement of about the problem along with an affirmation. It is a very simple and quick technique to apply.
Previous research conducted in EFT has also shown positive results for reducing anxiety in students (and adults) and improving performance, and it may be a useful technique that teachers can use in the classroom for supporting student wellbeing.
