Comparing the Effectiveness of Psychodrama and Transactional Analysis on Anger in Male Adolescents

Adolescence is one of the most sensitive stages of human development, and enough attention should be paid to the psychological problems of this stage. To this end, the present study aims to compare the effectiveness of psychodrama and transactional analysis on anger in male adolescents.

This semi-experimental study was performed based on a pre-test, post-test, and follow-up design with a control group. The target population consisted of all third grade male students in ordinary public junior high schools in Khorramdareh in the academic year 2019-2020. In total, 30 Male students were selected using an available sampling method and randomly divided into three groups. Members of both experimental groups received their treatment in eight 90-minute sessions. The control group did not receive any treatment. The research instrument was the Nelson Children and Adolescents Anger Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using a two-way repeated measures ANOVA and the Bonferroni post-hoc test.

In the pre-test stage, mean and standard deviation of the scores was 99.20±14.57 in the psychodrama group, 93.70±10.36 in the transactional analysis, and 96.90±14.28 in the control group. Compared to the control group, psychodrama and interaction behavior analysis reduced male adolescent anger in the post-test (p<0.001). At the follow-up stage, the effect of these two treatments on anger was lasting (p<0.001). The effect of transactional analysis on male adolescent anger in the post-test phase was greater than that of psychodrama (p=0.014).

According to the results of this study, psychodrama and transactional analysis can be effective in reducing aggression in adolescent boys. These interventions can be used to reduce adolescent aggression.