The Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Training Program on Acceptance of Autistic Children by Mothers

This study was acomplished to evaluate the effectiveness of the acceptance and commitment training on the acceptance of autistic children by mothers. The method of the study was quasi-experimental with pre-test, post-test, and follow-up design. Population of the study included the whole mothers whose autistic child was receiving training and rehabilitation in Nedaye Asre Tehran Autism Center in educational year of 2015-16. Using convenience sampling, eleven mothers were selected as a sample group and received acceptance and commitment training in nine two-hour-sessions. As a research tool, the second edition of Acceptance and Action Questionnaire was used and analyzed based on data using paired/correlated t-test. Data analysis of results revealed that there was a significant difference between the results of the pre-test, post-test and follow-up. The result confirmed that acceptance and commitment training has been effective on mothers in accepting their autistic child, by increasing psychological flexibility and decreasing experiential avoidance.