Comparing the Effectiveness of Group Reality Therapy and Group Person-Centered Therapy on Emotional Intelligence and Meaning of Life among Prisoners

The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of group reality therapy with person-centered group therapy on the prisoners’ emotional intelligence and their meaning of life.

This study was a quasi-experimental study with pre-test, post-test and 3-month follow-up assessments. The statistical population was all prisoners in the counseling unit of Mashhad prison. The sampling method was purposeful and a total of 45 prisoners, who met the inclusion criteria, were selected and randomly divided into three groups: reality therapy, person-centered therapy and control group. Each of the experimental groups received 24 sessions of treatment (two sessions per week) and the control group did not receive any intervention. Participants answered the questionnaires of emotional intelligence and meaning in life in three stages.

The results showed that both reality therapy and person-centered groups led to a significant increase in emotional intelligence and meaningful life, compared to the control group. It was also found that reality therapy is more effective in increasing the meaning of prisoners' lives, compared to person-centered treatment. However, the results showed no significant difference in the effectiveness of two interventions on the prisoners’ emotional intelligence. These results remained unchanged in the follow-up stage.