The effect of intervention of the developed attachment-based family therapy program in improving the relationship of depressed and anxious adolescents with their parents

Disturbance in relationships is the basis and foundation of emotional disorders. Due to the growth of mood and communication problems in families, the concern about the quality of the parent-child relationships during adolescence has increased significantly in recent years.

Considering the importance of the role of attachment in solving the communication problems of families, the present study was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of a therapeutic program developed based on attachment and by Iranian culture in improving the relationship between depressed and anxious adolescents and their parents.

This research method was semi-experimental with a pre-test, post-test design with a control group, and a 6-week follow-up using a random selection of group members. The statistical population of the present study was 93 depressed and anxious teenagers visiting Rasht counseling centers in the age group of 14 to 18 years; based on the screening program (interview and implementation of the DASS-21 test), 48 people were selected and randomly replaced in the experimental and control groups. The experimental group received the indigenous program of attachment-based intervention developed by Diamond, Diamond, & Levy (2014). Analysis of variance with repeated measurements was used to analyze the data.

The results showed that the intervention used caused a significant difference in the improvement of the relationship between the test group and the control group, which indicates the effect of the intervention and the family therapy program developed based on attachment, in improving the communication context between depressed and anxious teenagers and their parents, and the effect of this The intervention did not return in the follow-up phase and remained stable.

Considering that the developed treatment provides useful solutions for the quality of the attachment relationship and improving the communication between teenagers and their parents, this program can be considered an effective treatment method.