The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy on the Social Adjustment and Cognitive Distortion in the Elderly Men

Aging is one of the developmental stages in the field of global health, and it is highly important to pay attention to the elderly in terms of their psychological and physical needs. This issue indicates the ever-increasing necessity of applying effective interventions. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to consider the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on social adjustment and cognitive distortion in the elderly men. It was a quasi-experimental study with pretest-posttest and control group design. The statistical population of the study included all the elderly men in the age range of 65 to 75 years who were living in Khoramabad, Iran in 2021. The sample size consisted of 30 elderly men selected using convenience sampling method and according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The experimental group received eight weekly 90-minute sessions of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. The questionnaires applied in the current study included Hamamci & Buyukozturk’s interpersonal cognitive distortions and Bell's social adjustment. Data were analyzed using Univariate Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) in SPSS-22 software. The results revealed that there is a significant difference between the control and experimental groups in post-test stage in terms of social adjustment and cognitive distortions (P<0.001), controlling the effect of pre-test. According to the findings of the present study, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy improves the social adjustment and reduces cognitive distortion in the elderly. The findings of the study can start a new chapter in clinical interventions, and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy can be implemented as an effective intervention for improving general health and quality of life in the elderly.