Breathing Life into Social Emotional Learning Programs: A Bio-Psycho-Social Approach to Risk Reduction and Positive Youth Development

This randomized controlled trial of 79 urban eighth graders evaluated the SKY Schools program, a standardized bio-psycho-social intervention integrating controlled yogic breathing to promote emotional and behavioral well-being. Repeated-measures ANOVAs showed that, compared to controls, SKY participants demonstrated significant improvements in emotion regulation, planning, concentration, and reduced distractibility. After three months, additional gains were observed in identity formation and lower aggressive normative beliefs. These results indicate that incorporating biologically calming techniques within social-emotional learning frameworks can enhance youth well-being and help prevent risk behaviors..