EFFECTIVENESS OF SPIRITUAL EMOTIONAL FREEDOM TECHNIQUE (SEFT) THERAPY ON MENTAL HEALTH IN ADOLESCENTS: A LITERATURE REVIEW
DOI:
10.54443/morfai.v5i5.4445Published:
2025-11-15Downloads
Abstract
Mental health is influenced by the balance of psychological, emotional, and spiritual aspects. One emerging spiritual-based non-pharmacological intervention is the Spiritual Emotional Freedom Technique (SEFT), a tapping technique on energy points accompanied by affirmations and prayers. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of SEFT on stress, anxiety, and depression. The method used was a systematic literature review of articles published between 2021 and 2025 in the Scopus and Google Scholar databases, with human populations and quantitative outcomes. The literature search was conducted using a combination of keywords in Indonesian (SEFT, stress, anxiety, depression, mental health) and English (SEFT, stress, anxiety, depression, mental health). Of the 16,712 identified articles, a selection process was conducted based on the 2020 PRISMA guidelines through the stages of identification, screening, eligibility, and inclusion. Five articles met the inclusion criteria for review and critical analysis. The results showed that most studies reported significant reductions in stress, anxiety, and/or depression after the SEFT intervention, using instruments such as the DASS-21, HADS, and PSS. SEFT has the potential to be a non-pharmacological spiritual intervention to support psychological well-being and holistic nursing practice, although large-scale RCTs with more robust methodological designs are needed.
Keywords:
SEFT Stress Anxiety Depression Mental HealthReferences
Annuar, K. (2022). TERAPI SEFT (SPIRITUAL EMOTIONAL FREEDOM TECHNIQUE) UNTUK MENGATASI KECEMASAN BELAJAR SISWA. Counselia; Jurnal Bimbingan Konseling Pendidikan Islam, 3(2), 29–40. https://doi.org/10.31943/counselia.v3i2.41
Ayuningtias, E. W., Yanto, & Amalianita, B. (2025). Penerapan Spiritual Emotional Freedom Technique (Seft) Untuk Mereduksi Kecemasan Siswa dalam Belajar. PEMBELAJAR: Jurnal Ilmu Pendidikan, Keguruan, Dan Pembelajaran, 9(1), 91. https://doi.org/10.26858/pembelajar.v8i2.71299
Chaudhari, K. S., Dhapkas, M. P., Kumar, A., & Ingle, R. G. (2024). Mental Disorders – A Serious Global Concern that Needs to Address. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL QUALITY ASSURANCE, 15(02), 973–978. https://doi.org/10.25258/ijpqa.15.2.66
Choi, S. H., Sung, S.-H., & Lee, G. (2025). Emotional Freedom Techniques for Anxiety Disorders: A Systematic Review. Healthcare, 13(17), 2180. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13172180
Cholilah, I. R. (2023). Spiritual Emotional Freedom Technique (SEFT) Therapy in Reducing Student Anxiety Levels. Jurnal Al-Hikmah, 21(2), 161–174. https://doi.org/10.35719/k55dxp92
Fadillah, Z. I. (2024). Pentingnya kesehatan mental karyawan di tempat kerja terhadap kinerja karyawan. In JBK Jurnal Bimbingan Konseling (Vol. 2). https://journal.sabajayapublisher.com/index.php/jbk
Fitriasari, A., Yulanda, N. A., Khamida, Purwanti, N., & Septianingrum, Y. (2024). The Effect of Emotional Freedom Technique on Academic Anxiety and Stress in Nursing Students. South Eastern European Journal of Public Health, 41–45. https://doi.org/10.70135/seejph.vi.749
Hidayatullah, R. M., & Indana, F. N. (2024). Terapi spiritual emotional freedom technique (SEFT) untuk penanganan gangguan neurotik. PSYCOMEDIA : Jurnal Psikologi, 4(1), 19–31. https://doi.org/10.35316/psycomedia.2024.v4i1.19-31
Kementerian Kesehatan Republik Indonesia. (2023). DALAM ANGKA TIM PENYUSUN SKI 2023 DALAM ANGKA KEMENTERIAN KESEHATAN REPUBLIK INDONESIA. https://www.badankebijakan.kemkes.go.id/hasil-ski-2023/
Kementerian Kesehatan Republik Indonesia. (2024, November 28). Pentingnya Kesehatan Mental bagi Remaja dan Cara Menghadapinya. Kementerian Kesehatan Republik Indonesia. https://ayosehat.kemkes.go.id/pentingnya-kesehatan-mental-bagi-remaja
Lin, J., & Guo, W. (2024). The Research on Risk Factors for Adolescents’ Mental Health. Behavioral Sciences, 14(4), 263. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14040263
Nuroh, S. (2022). PENGARUH TERAPI SPIRITUAL EMOTIONAL FREEDOM TECHNIQUE (SEFT) UNTUK MENGATASI THANATOPHOBIA PADA LANSIA [THE EFFECT OF SPIRITUAL EMOTIONAL FREEDOM TECHNIQUE (SEFT) THERAPY FOR OVERCOMING THANATOPHOBIA IN THE ELDERLY]. Acta Islamica Counsenesia: Counselling Research and Applications, 2(1), 39–50. https://doi.org/10.59027/aiccra.v2i1.188
Qolbi, L. L., Yuliana, N., & Estiningtyas. (2024). Pengaruh Terapi Spiritual Emotional Freedom Technique (SEFT) terhadap Penurunan Kecemasan pada Mahasiswa Tingkat Akhir. Jurnal Stethoscope, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.54877/stethoscope.v4i1.992
Rachmanto, T. A., & Pohan, V. Y. (2021). Terapi spiritual emotional freedom technique (SEFT) terhadap tekanan darah pada lansia hipertensi. Ners Muda, 2(3), 100. https://doi.org/10.26714/nm.v2i3.8496
Rahmy, H. A., & Muslimahayati, M. (2021). Depresi dan kecemasan remaja ditinjau dari perspektif kesehatan dan Islam. DEMOS: Journal of Demography, Ethnography and Social Transformation, 1(1), 35–44. https://doi.org/10.30631/demos.v1i1.1017
Rizkiana, R. E., & Mulianda, D. (2021). Penerapan terapi Spiritual Emotional Freedom Technique (SEFT) terhadap penurunan tekanan darah pada pasien hipertensi di Rumah Sakit Umum Daerah Ungaran: The implementation of Spiritual Emotional Freedom Technique (SEFT) therapy on blood pressure decreases in hypertension patients at Ungaran Regional General Hospital. Jurnal Keperawatan Sisthana, 6(1).
Samsugito, I., Nur, S. R. F., & Sari, C. P. (2024). Description of the Application of Spiritual Emotional Freedom Technique (SEFT) on Anxiety in Adolescents Who Do Early Marriage. Jurnal Kesehatan Pasak Bumi Kalimantan, 6(2), 281. https://doi.org/10.30872/j.kes.pasmi.kal.v6i2.11615
Seok, J.-W., & Kim, J. U. (2024). The Effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Techniques for Depressive Symptoms: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 13(21), 6481. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm13216481
Subchi, I., Wahyuni, Z. I., Nufus, A. Z., Amyn, I. M., Mafaza, M., & Adelina, R. (2022). Evaluation of Mental Health Consultation Application Performance using PIECES Method. 2022 10th International Conference on Cyber and IT Service Management (CITSM), 01–06. https://doi.org/10.1109/CITSM56380.2022.9936000
World Health Organization. (2024, November 1). Transforming adolescent health: WHO’s comprehensive report on global progress and gaps. https://www.who.int/indonesia/news/detail/01-11-2024-transforming-adolescent-health--who-s-comprehensive-report-on-global-progress-and-gaps
World Health Organization. (2025, September 1). Mental health of adolescents. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-mental-health
Yüksel, R., Çekiç, Y., & Çolak, B. (2025). ‘My Journey’: A Qualitative Study of Recovery From the Perspective of Individuals With Chronic Mental Illness. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 34(1). https://doi.org/10.1111/inm.13433
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Putri Keke Yuni Nursa’at, Nur Khasanah

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.




