The Effectiveness of Integration Psychodrama with Cognitive Behavioral Group Therapy on the Dimensions of Interpersonal Sensitivity and Social Anxiety in Teenage Girls

 Social anxiety disorder with a frequency of 13% and a higher prevalence in teenage girls is the third most common mental disorder. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to investigate the integration of psychodrama with cognitive behavioral group therapy on the dimensions of interpersonal sensitivity and social anxiety for teenage girls.

The current study was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test, post-test design, and follow-up with a control group. The statistical population included all ninth-grade female students of Sirjan City in the academic year 2021-22. After screening and initial diagnosis, 24 persons were conveniently selected and were randomly assigned to the experimental (n = 12) and the control (n =12) groups and the experimental group received integrated psychodrama and cognitive behavioral group therapy for 9 sessions (120 minutes per session) per week. The social anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A) and The InterPersonal Sensitivity questionnaire (IPSM) were used to collect data. Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) was used to analyze the data.

 The results of multivariate analysis of covariance showed a significant effect of integration of psychodrama therapy with cognitive behavioral group therapy on reducing interpersonal sensitivity and social anxiety in the post-test and follow-up phase in the experimental group compared to the control group (P≤0/01)

  In general, the results indicated that the integration of psychodrama with cognitive behavioral group therapy was effective in improving social anxiety and reducing interpersonal sensitivity in adolescents due to the use of role-playing and objectification of internal imaginations and tendencies, as well as the emphasis on cognitive reconstruction