Tapping Your Way to Success: Using Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) to Reduce Anxiety and Improve Communication Skills in Social Work Students

Highlights

Study using EFT to support Social Work students with the anxieties provoked by their work and which had been reported by students as affecting the performance. To address this anxiety, a pilot study was set up using Emotional Freedom Technique as the intervention to reduce academic anxiety and enhance public speaking. Subjective stress and anxiety were measured before and after the use of EFT. A 15-minutes lecture assignment was the subjective trigger event for the study.

Quantitative findings showed “significantly less subjective stress and anxiety after using EFT. Qualitative measures from post-experience interviews found themes of EFT work being calming, relaxing and helpful". Students also considered transferability of EFT and considered some mechanisms of EFT’s action.

EFTi Editor’s notes

Assessment tools used: Subjective stress and anxiety measure before and after and qualitative interviewing, recording themes.

Given this was a pilot study and the full study was not accessible for the purposes of this summary, we have limited scope to comment further on this research piece.

Link to study at tandfonline

Citation: Elizabeth Boath, Rachel Good, Anna Tsaroucha, Tony Stewart, Sheila Pitch & Adam J. Boughey Tapping your way to success: using Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) to reduce anxiety and improve communication skills in social work students. Social Work Education The International Journal. Vol 36, 2017. Issue 6

Abstract

By the nature of their professional training and practice placements, social work students are prone to situations provoking the onset of anxiety. A programme of academic and placement support, termed the ‘Skills Lab’, provides help and support for students to develop their communication skills and prepare for their practice placements and transition into professional social work practice. Skills Lab evaluations indicated a high level of appreciation, linked with a strong sense of apprehension and anxiety, which some students report has negatively affected their performance. To address student anxiety, a pilot study using Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) was developed. EFT is an intervention, which may potentially be effective in reducing academic anxiety and enhancing public speaking. This mixed-methods pilot study measured participants’ (n = 45) subjective distress and anxiety before and after using EFT. Subjective distress/anxiety was invoked through a 15-min assignment lecture. Twelve of the 45 students also participated in one-one interviews to elaborate on their experiences of EFT. Quantitative findings indicated participants reported significantly less subjective distress and anxiety after using EFT. Qualitative findings indicated three themes whereby participants found EFT calming, relaxing and helpful; considered the transferability of EFT in other settings; and proposed some of the mechanisms of EFT’s action.

Link to study at tandfonline