Promoting Kindness Through the Positive Theatrical Arts: Assessing Kuwait’s Boomerang Programme

As the field of positive psychology aims to build and strengthen the well-being of individuals, its repertoire of empirically validated strategies designed to do so is growing. Kuwait’s “Boomerang” anti-bullying theatre programme designed to increase social kindness in schools is an example. The tools of applied theatre were taught to facilitators, who in turn trained seven to ten students who were real-life bullies, victims, and bystanders across seven Kuwaiti schools to become actors in each institution’s culminating theatre play. Participating acting students and audience members were assessed to determine the effects of the programme. Results showed that their perceptions of social cohesion and trust, a positive school climate, and life satisfaction improved. Implications for student well-being are discussed, alongside the broader use of the positive arts, an emerging area of positive psychology.