The Effectiveness of Mentalization based Treatment for Children (MBT-C) on Parental Reflective Functioning of Divorced Parents with Children Aged Five to Twelve

Children usually do not have a clear understanding of their parents' divorce; Sometimes they feel responsible for their parents ' divorce and do not hope to have a better life after their parents' divorce. Therefore, it is necessary to make a lot of effort to achieve the necessary adaptation and mental health. The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of mentalization-based treatment for children (MBT-C) on parental reflective functioning of divorced parents with children aged 5 to 12 in Isfahan.

The research design was quasi-experimental with pre-test, post-test, and a two-month follow-up period. The statistical population included all divorced parents with children aged 5 to 12 in Isfahan in the spring of 1401. For this purpose, by posting a call on social networks and inviting them to participate in the research, by available sampling method and considering the entry and exit criteria, 30 people were selected and randomly divided into two experimental and control groups (15 experimental and 15 Control) were assigned. The experimental group participated in 12 sessions of MBT-C based on 12 sessions of 60 minutes; But for the control group, no intervention was made. The research instrument included the parental reflective functioning questionnaire of Luyten et al, (2017). Research data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance in SPSS-26 software.

The results showed that MBT-C intervention had a significant effect on parental reflective functioning and its dimensions including prementalizing modes (PM), certainty of mental states (CMS), and interest and curiosity in mental states (IC) of divorced parents with children 5 to 12 years in two stages of post-test and follow-up. And the effects of treatment remained constant over time (p <0.01).

Considering the effectiveness of mentalization-based treatment for children (MBT-C) on parental reflective functioning of divorced parents with children aged 5 to 12, it is suggested that effective measures be taken by educational and medical specialists to develop parental education and treatment programs.