Promoting introspection in teacher training through Vital House: a digital program to support mental health

Abstract

Aim: To explore preliminary signals of change associated with a digitalized educational innovation-The Vital House (La Casa Vital)-on psychological flexibility and introspection among prospective secondary-school teachers in Spain, with the broader goal of promoting mental health competencies relevant to adolescent well-being.

Methods: A total of 82 students enrolled in a Master’s program in teacher training at a Spanish public university participated in a 10-session intervention over 2.5 months (approximately 20 hours total). The Vital House model, a metaphorical representation of personal identity through “rooms” symbolizing life roles, was adapted into a digital format. Each room included interactive resources designed to address key psychosocial variables, including self-efficacy, emotional regulation, and cognitive defusion. Participants reflected on their learning histories and the influence of significant figures, including teachers, on adult identity. Pre- and post-intervention measures assessed components of the ACT Hexaflex model (ad-hoc questionnaire) and introspective capacity (Self-Reflection and Insight Scale-Short Form).

Results: Paired-sample analyses indicated pre–post differences on five of six ACT processes: values (p = 0.048), mindfulness (p = 0.014), self-as-context (p < 0.001), cognitive defusion (p = 0.034), acceptance (p = 0.019), and on introspective capacity (p = 0.008). Effect sizes were in the small-to-moderate range, with Cohen’s d values ranging from 0.22 (small) to 0.42 (moderate). These findings should be interpreted cautiously given the design.

Conclusions: In this pilot-level, single-group study, Vital House showed preliminary indications of promise for enhancing psychological flexibility and introspection in teacher training. However, the absence of a control/comparison group, the potential influence of concurrent course content, maturation, historical events, and repeated-testing effects, as well as the lack of post-intervention follow-up, limit causal inference and claims about durability. Future controlled studies with follow-up are warranted to evaluate efficacy, mechanisms, and maintenance, and to assess scalability across educational contexts.

Keywords

digital innovation / teachers / psychological flexibility / mental health / introspection

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