The Effectiveness of Teaching Patience for Hope and Well-Being of the Psychology of the Mothers with Mentally Retarded Children

The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of teaching patience for the psychological well-being and hope among the mothers of mentally retarded children. The research method was semi-experimental, (pre-test, post-test design with control group) and convenience sampling method was used. The subjects were 20 mothers of mentally retarded children in Tehran, who were identified as being impatient by means of patience scale and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The mothers responded to the psychological well-being and hope questionnaires. Patience training was performed as an intervention in the experimental group, but the control group did not receive any intervention. Before the intervention, after the end of the training sessions, as well as two months after the intervention, the psychological well-being and hope questionnaires were completed. Data analysis was performed using covariance analysis and paired t-test. The results of this study showed that patience training is effective in promoting hope and psychological well-being. Therefore, the teaching of patience can be used to promote the hope and psychological well-being of the mothers of mentally retarded children.