Effect of Silva psycho-motor relaxation on Behavioral Activation / Inhibition Systems in patients who sufferred from generalized anxiety disorder

The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of psycho-motor relaxation in the Silva method on Behavioral Activation / Inhibition Systems in patients who sufferred from generalized anxiety disorder. This research is a pre-test and post-test type with control group. The statistical population of the study consisted of all patients who suffer from generalized anxiety disorder referred to counseling centers in Tehran during the first six months of 2018. Patients were assessed with a generalized anxiety disorder scale, then, thirty of them were selected by available sampling according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. They were randomly assigned to two experimental (n = 15) and control (n = 15) groups. The experimental group received Silva-based psycho-motor relaxation therapy in 8 sessions of 90 minutes (two sessions per week); the control group was on the waiting list for two months. Behavioral activation / inhibition systems scale was used in two stages of pre-test and post-test. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance. The results showed that there was a significant difference in mean scores of behavioral activation / inhibition systems after controlling for pre-test effect. Overall, according to the results of the study, it can be said that Silva-based psycho-motor relaxation has an effect on behavioral activation and reduction of behavioral inhibition in patients who sufferred from generalized anxiety disorder.