The Effectiveness of Internet-Based Mindfulness Training on Parental Burnout and Self-Compassion of Mothers with Children with Specific Learning Disorder

Specific learning disorder (SLD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders that causes problems in the field of academic skills. The current investigation aimed to assess the effectiveness of Internet-based mindfulness training on parental burnout and self-compassion of mothers with children with SLD.

This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design with the control group. The research sample included 32 mothers of children with SLD in Fuman City in the academic year of  2022 _ 2023, who were selected by convenience sampling and randomly assigned to two experimental and control groups. The experimental group participated in the Internet-based mindfulness training course for 8 weekly sessions, while the control group received their usual training center. The research tools were the Roskam Parental Burnout Questionnaire (2018) and Raes's (2011) Self-Compassion Scale. The data were analyzed by analysis of covariance and Spss 27 software.

The results showed that the average score post-test in the experimental group changed relative to the control group and that means parental burnout scores of the experimental group decreased (F = 82.001, P < 0.05) and the self-compassion scores increased (F = 226.320, P < 0.05).

The results showed that Internet-based mindfulness training with emphasis on components such as becoming mindful of thoughts and feelings, and being present in the moment, reduces parental burnout and improves the level of self-compassion in mothers with children with SLD. Therefore, it can be implemented by experts in different fields as one of the axes of parent training.