commitment therapy

The purpose of the present study was to compare the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment-based therapy and intensive and short-term dynamic psychotherapy on emotional regulation of people with irritable bowel syndrome. The research method was semi-experimental in terms of practical purpose and in terms of data collection with a pre-test and post-test design with an unequal control group. The statistical population of the study included all patients with irritable bowel syndrome over 20 years old in Shiraz city in 2022. 45 people were selected from the statistical population using the purposeful sampling method and then randomly assigned to the first experimental group (15 people), the second experiment (15 people) and the control group (15 people). The research tool included the Gratz (2004) emotional regulation difficulty scale questionnaire. The findings showed that both short-term intensive psychodynamic intervention and treatment based on acceptance and commitment increased emotion regulation in irritable bowel syndrome patients (p<0.05). Also, the findings of the research indicated that there is a significant difference between intensive short-term psychodynamic therapy and treatment based on acceptance and commitment, and short-term and intensive psychodynamic therapy is a more effective method in increasing emotion regulation. be (p<0.001). According to the findings of this research, both interventions, especially short-term intensive psychodynamic therapy, can be used to increase the emotional regulation of patients with irritable bowel syndrome, along with other therapeutic interventions.

The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy on intensity pain and pain catastrophizing in women with chronic pain.

This study was semi-experimental with a pretest-posttest and follow-up with a control group design. The statistical population was made up of female patients with chronic pain referred to Emma Reza hospital in Tabriz city in 2023. In total, 30 people were selected by purposive sampling method, and randomly divided into two groups (15 people each). Members of the experimental group received their treatment in eight sessions of 1.5 hours; however, the control group did not receive any treatment. Both groups answered the 20-question sleep quality Pittsburgh McGill pain intensity and 29-question Sullivan et al pain catastrophic Questionnaires, before, after and 3 months after the intervention. Data were Analyzed using ANOVA with repeated measures.

The results showed that the acceptance and commitment therapy reduced the intensity pain and pain catastrophizing women with chronic pain in the post-test compared to the control group (P<0.001). The effect of acceptance and commitment therapy on intensity pain and pain catastrophizing was lasting in the follow-up phase (P<0.001).

It seems that acceptance and commitment therapy can reduce the intensity pain and pain catastrophizing in women with chronic pain, therefore it is likely to be a useful treatment strategy to improve the intensity and pain catastrophizing in women with chronic pain

self-injury or self-poisoning among adolescents, irrespective of the reasons behind it, is viewed as self-harm. The primary aim of this research was to evaluate the effects of acceptance and commitment therapy on impulsivity and resilience in adolescents demonstrating self-harm behaviors in Iranshahr City. Being aware of self-harming actions during adolescence can aid in avoiding enduring or irreversible effects related to them.

This quasi-experimental study employed a pre-test-post-test framework alongside a control group. The statistical population comprised secondary school students in the second term in Iranshahr city in 2024. Thirty students were chosen non-randomly and subsequently assigned at random to intervention and control groups (15 students per group). The intervention group underwent acceptance and commitment therapy, administered in 8 sessions lasting 90 minutes each, in accordance with Hayes et al.'s protocol. The questionnaires utilized in this research comprised Klonsky and Glenn's (2003) Self-Injurious Behaviors Questionnaire, Barrett's Impulsivity Scale (2004), and Connor and Davidson's (2003) Resilience Questionnaire. The analysis of the data was conducted using SPSS26 software and a multivariate analysis of covariance test.

The findings from the covariance analysis of the data indicated that the acceptance and commitment group therapy intervention diminished impulsivity (F=5.49, P≤.002) and enhanced resilience (F=95.0089, P≤.001) in adolescents when compared to the control group.

The findings suggest that acceptance and commitment therapy effectively reduced impulsivity and enhanced resilience in adolescents who exhibit self-harm behaviors, thus recommending this method for students engaging in self-harm.

Marital conflict is an important factor in family instability, and women often suffer more from marital conflicts. Therefore, paying attention to the components that can help women cope with these challenges is necessary. Among these components are family adaptability and mental well-being, which play a crucial role in addressing the problems within their marital relationships.

This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of the Paradox Time-Table Cure and the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Matrix on family adaptability and mental well-being in women experiencing marital conflicts.

The study used a quasi-experimental design with pre-test, post-test, and follow-up stages. It included 45 women with marital conflicts, divided into two experimental groups (15 each) receiving Acceptance and Commitment Therapy or Paradox Time-Table Cure over ten sessions, and a control group (15) with no intervention. Assessments used the Olson (1985) Family Adaptability Questionnaire and Ryff (2002) Psychological Well-Being Scale, with data analyzed variance repeated measures and post hoc Bonferroni tests.

The findings showed that the Paradox Time-Table Cure and matrix of acceptance and commitment therapy were both effective on family adaptability compared to the control group. However, the efficacy of paradox therapy was higher (p=0.000). Also, the results for the mental well-being variable found only the acceptance and commitment matrix treatment to be effective and the Paradox Time-Table Cure had no effect on this component (p>0.05).

The results showed that both methods of Paradox Time-Table Cure and matrix of acceptance and commitment therapy were effective in increasing family adaptability. But in the component of mental well-being, only the acceptance and commitment treatment matrix had a positive effect.

This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of Emotion-Focused Couples Therapy (EFCT) based on the Attachment Injury Model and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on distress tolerance among healthcare workers in Lorestan Province who experienced marital infidelity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study population included all female healthcare workers in Lorestan Province who sought counseling services due to marital infidelity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using non-random convenience sampling, 30 participants were selected and assigned to two intervention groups (EFCT and ACT) and a control group. Additionally, 15 women without a history of marital infidelity were selected as the control group. The study employed a pretest-posttest design, and data were collected using Simmons and Gaher’s (2005) Distress Tolerance Questionnaire. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software (version 24).

Most participants were under 30 years old, with a small proportion over 40 years old, and the majority held a Bachelor’s degree. The mean distress tolerance scores were 3.480±0.661 for the EFCT group, 5.121±0.565 for the ACT group, and 3.813±0.631 for the control group. ACT had a greater impact on distress tolerance than EFCT, with an effect size of 0.772.

The results indicated that, compared to EFCT, ACT significantly improved distress tolerance among participants. ACT, as a therapeutic approach, influenced individuals’ internal motivation, thought patterns, and perceived control, fostering hope and goal-directed behavior. This approach was effective in enhancing distress tolerance among healthcare workers, who were affected by marital infidelity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This research aimed to determine the effectiveness of treatment based on acceptance and commitment and compassion-focused therapy on death anxiety and fear of falling in patients with multiple sclerosis.

In the present quasi-experimental study, the statistical population included all patients with multiple sclerosis referred to the MS Association of Tabriz in 2023. The sample size included 60 people from the statistical population selected by convenience sampling and were randomly replaced into three groups. For the first group, acceptance and commitment therapy was implemented in 8 60-minute sessions over four weeks, and for the second group, compassion therapy was implemented in 8 60-minute sessions over four weeks, while the third group (control) did not receive training. The research tools included the Death Anxiety Scale by Templer et al. (1970) and the Falls Efficacy Scale-International by Kempen et al. (2008). The data was analyzed using two-way repeated measures ANOVA.

The effect of interventions on reducing death anxiety (p=0.001, F=16.702) and fear of falling (p=0.001, F=30.263) in patients with multiple sclerosis was significant, and these positive effects remained stable during the follow-up period. Also, the results of the post hoc test showed that there was a statistically significant difference between the treatment methods (p<0.001) and acceptance and commitment therapy was more effective on death anxiety and fear of falling in patients with multiple sclerosis (p<0.001).

Considering the effect of acceptance and commitment therapy on death anxiety and fear of falling in patients with multiple sclerosis in the present study, more attention is recommended to conduct training based on this intervention.

Social anxiety disorder is a debilitating psychiatric condition characterized by persistent fear in social situations. Individuals with this disorder fear negative evaluation by others and experience significant worry. This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and paradoxical timetable therapy (PTT) on worry in individuals with social anxiety disorder. This applied study employed a single-case experimental design with an ABA framework. The statistical population included undergraduate psychology students with social anxiety disorder symptoms at Islamic Azad University, Khorramabad Branch during the 2022-2023 academic year. Six participants were selected through purposive sampling and randomly assigned to two intervention groups (PTC, ACT) and one control group. The experimental groups received ACT and PTT in 12 weekly 90-minute sessions over 12 weeks. The follow-up assessments were conducted at one month and two months post-intervention. The Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ) and Social Anxiety Questionnaire (SAQ) were used for data collection. Data were analyzed using single-subject analysis, including visual analysis of charts, trend indices, stability, percentage of non-overlapping data (PND), percentage of overlapping data, and recovery percentage. The percentage of non-comprehensive data (PND) was used for statistical significance. The results showed that there was a significant difference between the effect of ACT and PTT on worry levels in individuals with social anxiety disorder (P<0.001). ACT was more effective than PTT in reducing worry, and its effects remained stable during the follow-up period. It can be concluded that ACT, utilizing six core processes—psychological acceptance, cognitive defusion, self-as-context, present-moment awareness, values clarification, and committed action—can be prioritized as a therapeutic approach for individuals with social anxiety disorder.

Infidelity is a traumatic event that has many psychological consequences, including psychological distress and regret about choosing a spouse.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy on psychological distress and regretting of the  spouse choice in betrayed women.

This study was a quasi-experimental research. The statistical population of this research included all the betrayed women who referred to the counseling centers in Tehran, 2022, Among them 32 people were selected by purposive sampling  and were assigned  in two experimental and control groups. The participants completed the questionnaires of psychological distress by Kessler et al. (2002) and regret of choosing a spouse Schwartz et al. (2002) in three times: pre-test, post-test and follow-up. Repeated measures analysis of variance, Benferoni post hoc test and SPSS-27 software were used to analyze the data.

the results of the study indicated that acceptance and commitment therapy had a significant effect on psychological distress and regret of choosing a spouse in both within and between group status (P<0.05). The effectiveness of this intervention was lasting in the follow-up phase. The effect size for psychological distress and regret of choosing a spouse were 0.44 and 0.24 respectively (P<0.05).

Acceptance and commitment therapy reduce psychological distress and regretting the spouse choice in betrayed women. So, suggestting in the design of effective interventions for betrayed women, acceptance and commitment therapy can be used to reduce the psychological distress and regretting of the spouse choice.

Epilepsy is a chronic condition caused by a dysfunction in brain function, and each episode of the disease has a profound impact on those affected. This study aimed to examine the effect of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) group therapy on the quality of life and emotions of patients with epilepsy.

This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test and post-test design, including a control group. The sample consisted of 33 participants (16 in the experimental group and 17 in the control group), selected through purposive sampling. The intervention was provided in 9 sessions to the experimental group. The control group received no intervention and was placed on a waiting list for treatment. Data were collected using demographic information questionnaires, the Quality of Life in Epilepsy Patients Questionnaire (P-31-QOLIE), and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). The data were analyzed using covariance analysis.

The results show a significant difference between the experimental and control groups under the influence of ACT in terms of quality of life (P = 0.001) and negative emotions (P = 0.004), while no significant difference was observed between the two groups in positive emotions (P = 0.573).

Based on the findings of this study, ACT is an effective and non-invasive therapeutic method that can be used alongside medical interventions to improve the quality of life and reduce negative emotions in patients with epilepsy.

The damages of perfectionism in obsessive personality during COVID–19 pandemic need psychological treatments. The main symptom of an obsessive–compulsive personality is perfectionism. This symptom has intensity and weakness in the nurses of different hospital departments. Therefore, the treatment of perfectionism in the nursing group is considered important. This research responds to the impact of acceptance and commitment based on compassion and emotion–oriented schema therapy on the perfectionism of nurses. So far, no study has been done on perfectionism in emotion–oriented schema therapy. Considering the combination of emotion–oriented schema therapy and meta–diagnosis of perfectionism, this research seems necessary. Also, due to the similar diagnostic elements in the two treatments of acceptance and commitment therapy based on compassion and emotional schemas, no comparison has been made between these two treatments. So, this research investigated the effectiveness of emotion–oriented schema therapy and compassion–based acceptance and commitment therapy on the perfectionism of nurses with obsessive–compulsive personality traits working in the coronavirus ward.

This quasi–experimental study employed a pretest–posttest and follow–up design with a control group. The statistical population comprised the nurses working in the coronavirus departments of the social security hospitals of Karaj and Tehran cities, Iran, in 2021 and 2022. Of them, 40 nurses were selected using the available sampling method from Lavasani and Alborz hospitals who met the inclusion criteria. They were randomly assigned to two experimental groups and one control group. The inclusion criteria were as follows: not participating in other psychological interventions at the same time and lacking debilitating physical and mental illnesses (diagnosed by the researcher and using interviews). The exclusion criteria included the absence of more than three intervention sessions and non–observance of group therapy rules. For ten 120–minute sessions, the experimental groups underwent emotion–oriented schema therapy based on Leahy's program (2011) and compassion–based acceptance and commitment based on Tirch et al.'s (2014) program. This research used the Personality Inventory (Krueger et al., 2013) and the Tehran Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (Besharat, 2007) for data collection. Data analysis was carried out in two parts: descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. At the level of descriptive statistics, frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation were calculated. At the level of inferential statistics, variance analysis with repeated measurements and Bonferroni post hoc tests were performed. Data analysis was done using SPSS software version 24, and the significance level of the tests was considered to be 0.05.

Results showed that the mean scores of self–oriented perfectionism and community–oriented perfectionism in the two groups of emotion–oriented schema therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy based on compassion therapy did not have a significant difference (p=1.000). However, there was a significant difference between the acceptance and commitment treatment group based on compassion and the control group in self–oriented perfectionism in the posttest stage (p<0.001) and follow–up (p=0.004) as well as between community–oriented perfectionism in the posttest (p=0.008) and follow–up (p=0.015). Also, the emotion–oriented schema therapy group showed a significant difference with the control group in self–oriented perfectionism in the posttest (p=0.003) and follow–up (p=0.031), as well as between community–oriented perfectionism in the posttest (p=0.036). Still, the effect of this intervention in the follow–up phase on community–oriented perfectionism was not significant (p=0.078).

The results of the study indicate the similar effect of compassion–based acceptance and commitment therapy and emotion–oriented schema therapy on the perfectionism of nurses. Considering the similarity of these two treatments in communication with the present, education in the field of emotion, and their deficiency in obsessive personality, they can be used as complementary treatments.

Aging is a natural process of change that affects a person's social and psychological status and brings about new developments. Life expectancy is one of the factors closely associated with getting older. Because the presence of psychological symptoms, such as low life expectancy, in addition to imposing high costs on the health care system, results in poor treatment outcomes. Timely diagnosis and treatment of psychological symptoms in older people increased recovery, longer maintenance on other treatments, and improved overall quality of life. Consequently, psychological therapy can assist older adults in recovering from their individual, societal, and economic impairments. Logotherapy is one of these psychological procedures that assists clients in discovering the purpose of their lives. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is another subgroup of third–wave psychotherapy that can lessen some of the secondary effects of aging by increasing the life expectancy of older adults. The present study was done to compare the effects of logotherapy and ACT on the life expectancy of older adults.

This research method was quasi–experimental with a pretest–posttest design with a control group. In the first six months of 2021, all elderly residents referred to the municipality's health homes in Tehran City, Iran, were included in the statistical population. Of whom, 45 qualified participants entered the study by the available sampling and were randomly assigned to two experimental groups and one control group (each group with 15 people). In this way, by announcing the call for 3 weeks, eligible older people were registered to enter the research (76 people). Then, the Life Expectancy Questionnaire (Schneider et al., 1991) was implemented as a data collection tool. Next, 45 older adults who scored lower than average in the questionnaire (average score=36) were included in the study. The inclusion criteria were as follows: having at least 60 years and at most 75 years, having a level of literacy in reading and writing, appropriate listening and speaking ability, lacking a history of hospitalization in a psychiatric hospital, and providing informed consent to participate in research. The exclusion criteria included missing two or more intervention sessions and withdrawing from the study. In the current study, the intervention method of logotherapy (Frankl, 1967) was employed in ten 75– to 90–minute sessions for the first experimental group. In the second experimental group, ACT (Hayes, 2004) was used in eight sessions of 75–90 minutes. After collecting the data, they were analyzed using the Chi–square test, analysis of variance, univariate analysis of covariance, and Bonferroni post hoc test using SPSS statistical software version 23 at a significance level of 0.05.

The results showed that the difference in the average scores of total life expectancy (p<0.001) and components of functional hope (p<0.001) and strategic hope (p=0.018) in the posttest after controlling the pretest scores in the three groups was significant. The total scores of life expectancy (p = 0.009) and hope component (p=0.032) significantly differed between the experimental groups. Only logotherapy training had a significant effect on the total scores of life expectancy (p<0.001) components of functional hope (p<0.001) and strategic hope (p=0.005) compared to the control group. However, the ACT did not have a significant effect on life expectancy (p=0.213) and factors of functional hope (p=0.172) and strategic hope (p=0.142) compared with the control group.

Based on the findings, logotherapy is more effective in older people's life expectancy than acceptance and commitment therapy, and this therapeutic approach can be an effective intervention method for the life expectancy of older people.