Coping Cat

Scientific Rating:

1
Well-Supported by Research Evidence
See scale of 1-5
Child Welfare System Relevance Level:

Medium
See descriptions of 3 levels

About This Program

The information in this program outline is provided by the program representative and
edited by the CEBC staff. Coping Cat has been rated by the CEBC in the area of: Anxiety
Treatment (Child & Adolescent).

Target Population: Children experiencing problematic levels of anxiety

For children/adolescents ages: 7 – 13

For parents/caregivers of children ages: 7 – 13

Brief Description
Coping Cat is a cognitive-behavioral treatment for children with anxiety. The program
incorporates 4 components:

• Recognizing and understanding emotional and physical reactions to anxiety

• Clarifying thoughts and feelings in anxious situations
• Developing plans for effective coping
• Evaluating performance and giving self-reinforcement

Coping Cat also has a version for adolescents, ages 14-17, known as the C.A.T. Project
which is highlighted on the CEBC as well.

Material taken from The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare PENT Forum 2018
http://www.cebc4cw.org/ www.pent.ca.gov
Program Goals:

The overall goal of Coping Cat is:

• Reduce anxiety

Essential Components
The essential components of the Coping Cat program include:

• Psychoeducation, involving information for children and families about how anxiety
can develop and be maintained, and how it can be treated
• Exposure tasks, which give the child the chance to be in the feared situation and
have a mastery experience
• Somatic management, which teaches relaxation techniques
• Cognitive restructuring which addresses FEAR: Feeling frightened, expecting bad
things, attitudes and actions that will help, and results and rewards
• Problem solving to generate and evaluate specific actions for dealing with problems
• For group sessions, 4-5 participants per group is recommended

Child/Adolescent Services
Coping Cat directly provides services to children/adolescents and addresses the
following:

• Anxiety

Parent/Caregiver Services
Coping Cat directly provides services to parents/caregivers and addresses the following:

• Parents are involved in the child-focused (individual treatment) program, and meet
in sessions 4 and 9, as well as in other sessions as needed for the exposure tasks.
There is also a family (parents included) treatment section.

Material taken from The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare PENT Forum 2018
http://www.cebc4cw.org/ www.pent.ca.gov
Recommended Parameters
Recommended Intensity:
Weekly 50-minute sessions

Recommended Duration:
The typical implementation schedule is 16 weeks. The computer-assisted intervention,
Camp Cope-a-Lot, is 12 sessions with less than half of the sessions requiring professional
time.

Delivery Settings
This program is typically conducted in a(n):

• Community Agency
• Group Home
• Hospital
• Residential Care Facility
• School

Homework
Coping Cat includes a homework component:

One STIC task (where STIC stands for "Show That I Can") is assigned per week.

Languages
Coping Cat has materials available in languages other than English:

Chinese, Hungarian, Japanese, Norwegian, Spanish

For information on which materials are available in these languages, please check on the
program's website or contact the program representative (contact information is listed at the
bottom of this page).

Material taken from The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare PENT Forum 2018
http://www.cebc4cw.org/ www.pent.ca.gov
Resources Needed to Run Program
The typical resources for implementing the program are:

• Child workbook
• Therapist manual
• Office space
• Access to an internet-connected computer if using the computer-assisted program

Minimum Provider Qualifications

None have been set at this time.

Education and Training Resources

There is a manual that describes how to implement this program, and there is training
available for this program.

Training Contact:
• Dr. Philip C. Kendall
Temple University
[email protected]

Training is obtained:
There are several training DVDs, including a computer-based training program
(CBT4CBT) available at www.WorkbookPublishing.com

Number of days/hours:
The DVDs range in time from 40-90 minutes.

Implementation Information
Since Coping Cat is rated on the Scientific Rating Scale, information was requested from
the program representative on available pre-implementation assessments,
implementation tools, and/or fidelity measures.

Material taken from The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare PENT Forum 2018
http://www.cebc4cw.org/ www.pent.ca.gov
Relevant Published, Peer-Reviewed Research
This program is rated a "1 - Well-Supported by Research Evidence" on the Scientific
Rating Scale based on the published, peer-reviewed research available. The program
must have at least two rigorous randomized controlled trials with one showing a
sustained effect of at least 1 year. The article(s) below that reports outcomes from an
RCT showing a sustained effect of at least 1 year has an asterisk (*) at the beginning of
its entry. Please see the Scientific Rating Scale for more information.

Child Welfare Outcome: Child/Family Well-Being

References
Kendall, P. C., & Hedtke, K. (2006). Cognitive-behavioral therapy for anxious children:
Therapist manual (3rd ed.). Ardmore, PA: Workbook Publishing.

Kendall, P. C., & Hedtke, K. (2006). Coping Cat workbook. (2nd ed). Ardmore, PA:
Workbook Publishing.

Khanna, M., & Kendall, P. C. (2008). Computer assisted CBT for child anxiety: The Coping
Cat CD-ROM. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 15, 159-165.

Contact Information
Name: Philip C. Kendall, PhD, ABPP
Agency/Affiliation: Temple University
Website: www.workbookpublishing.com
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (215) 204-7165
Fax: (215) 204-0565
Date Research Evidence Last Reviewed by CEBC: August
2016

Date Program Content Last Reviewed by Program Staff:

March 2016

Date Program Originally Loaded onto CEBC: May 2009

Material taken from The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare PENT Forum 2018
http://www.cebc4cw.org/ www.pent.ca.gov