Effectiveness of Therapist-Assisted Couple Therapy on Psychological Well-being, Negotiation Increase, and Aggression Reduction in Women Victims of Partner Violence

The current study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of therapist-assisted couple therapy on psychological well-being, negotiation increase, and aggression reduction in women victims of partner violence.

Methods and Materials: 

This research was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test, post-test design with a control group. The study population included couples visiting counseling and psychotherapy centers in Qom city during the second half of the year 2021, among whom 30 couples were randomly assigned to two groups after controlling for entry criteria: the therapist-assisted intervention (15 couples) and the control group (15 couples). Research instruments included the Conflict Tactics Scale by Straus et al. (1979) and the Psychological Well-being Scale by Ryff (1989), administered to the female victims of violence in three stages: pre-test, post-test, and follow-up. The intervention group received an educational package by Aghayousefi et al. (2020) over eight sessions, while the control group did not receive any intervention. Data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance.

Results indicated that therapist-assisted couple therapy was effective in reducing aggression, increasing negotiation, and enhancing the psychological well-being of women victims of violence (P<0.05), with these effects being stable at the follow-up stage.

The findings suggest that therapist-assisted couple therapy is an appropriate method for resolving conflicts and improving psychological wellbeing.