نوع مقاله : مقاله پژوهشی
نویسندگان
1 دانشجوی دکتری، گروه روانشناسی، واحد تنکابن، دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی، تنکابن، ایران.
2 دانشیار، گروه روانشناسی، واحد تنکابن، دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی، تنکابن، ایران.
3 استادیار گروه روانشناسی، دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی، واحد تهران شمال، تهران، ایران.
چکیده
کلیدواژهها
عنوان مقاله [English]
نویسندگان [English]
Introduction: The purpose of this study was to comparison of effectiveness of acceptance-commitment therapy with reality therapy on covert relational aggression in women with marital burnout.
Method: This semi-experimental study employed a pretest-posttest design with a control group and a follow-up period of two months. The statistical population consisted of all women who visited counseling centers in Tehran in 2022. In the first stage, women with who scored of 73 or higher on marital Marital Burnout Questionnaire developed by Pines (2003) were selected and using a convenience sampling method. These participants were randomly divided to two experimental groups (each group 15 people) and one control group (15 people). The groups underwent acceptance-commitment Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (8 sessions 90 minutes) and reality therapy (8 sessions 90 minutes). Data were collected using the Covert Communication Aggression Scale developed by and Carroll (2006). Analysis Data analysis was conducted using repeated measures analysis variance with repeated software software.
Results: The results indicated that both interventions significantly affected covert relational aggression among women experiencing marital burnout (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the Bonferroni post hoc test revealed that acceptance and commitment therapy was more effective in reducing covert relational aggression (P < 0.05).
Discussion and conclusion: Based on the results of the present study, it can be concluded that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Reality Therapy can be effective treatment methods for addressing covert relational aggression among women experiencing marital burnout in counseling centers.
Extended Abstract
Introduction
When couples start a family, they embark on a journey filled with love and affection. During this process of family formation, they often do not consider that one day their love and affection for each other will decrease. It can be stated that the expectations couples have for their lives with their spouses, when linked to marital problems, create a foundation for marital dissatisfaction. Also, research has demonstrated that reality therapy is effective in reducing covert relational aggression, with this effectiveness being both lasting and stable over time. It is evident that both acceptance and commitment therapy, as well as reality therapy, significantly improve marital burnout and covert relational aggression. However, the effectiveness of these treatments for women experiencing marital burnout has been less extensively studied. Furthermore, from a methodological standpoint, there are fewer studies that have compared the efficacy of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Reality Therapy in reducing covert relational aggression. This lack of research makes it challenging to identify the most effective psychological treatment for women with marital burnout. Therefore, based on logical and scientific reasoning, it is important to compare these two therapies. Identifying one treatment as more effective than the other among various couples therapy approaches, as supported by empirical studies, can assist psychologists and family therapists working with women facing marital burnout. The findings from such research can guide practitioners in selecting the most effective type of couples therapy. For this reason, this research has practical implications for psychologists and family therapists in this field. The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy with reality therapy on covert relational aggression in women experiencing marital burnout.
Method
This semi-experimental study employed a pretest-posttest design with a control group and a two-month follow-up. The statistical population consisted of all women who visited counseling centers in Tehran in 2022. In the first stage, women with who scored and or higher on marital Marital Burnout Questionnaire developed by Pines (2003) were selected and using a convenience sampling method. These participants were randomly divided assigned to two groups (each (15 participants each) one control group (15 people) participants). The groups underwent acceptance-commitment Acceptance and Commitment Therapy sessions sessions, minutes) minutes each) reality Reality Therapy sessions sessions, minutes). minutes each). To collect data using the Covert Communication Aggression Scale developed by Nelson and Carroll (2006), the inclusion criteria for the study were as follows: participants needed to score 73 or higher on the Marital Burnout Scale, be between the ages of 30 and 45 years, have been married for at least six months to one year, report no physical or psychological illnesses (based on self-report), and possess a minimum educational qualification of a diploma and a maximum of a doctorate. The exclusion criteria included the use of psychiatric and psychotropic medications, missing more than two therapy sessions, participating in other courses or therapeutic interventions concurrently with the study, substance abuse (including drugs and cigarettes), and having psychiatric disorders. Data analysis was conducted using repeated measures analysis of variance with SPSS software.
Results
The mean and standard deviation of marital burnout in the commitment/acceptance treatment group were 0.75 and 0.845, respectively. In the reality therapy group, the mean and standard deviation of marital burnout were 13.75 and 0.640, while in the control group, they were 47.75 and 0.834. These values represent the burnout scores from the screening stage, and all three groups were comparable in this regard. The F statistic obtained from comparing the means of the three groups in the marital burnout variable is F = 1.429, which is not statistically significant (p = 0.251). This indicates that the three groups are comparable in terms of marital burnout during the screening stage. The mean and standard deviation of age in the acceptance/commitment treatment group were 7.31 and 0.79, respectively. In the reality therapy group, the mean and standard deviation of age were 93.30 and 575.3. The mean and standard deviation of age in the control group were 32.33 and 4.82. The F statistic obtained from comparing the means of the three groups for the age variable is F = 0.510, which is not statistically significant (p = 0.604). This indicates that the three groups are similar in terms of age. The Chi-Square statistic obtained from comparing the frequency and percentage of the three groups in the education variable is Chi-Square = 6.333, which is also not statistically significant (p = 0.610). This suggests that the three groups are similar in terms of education. The results indicated that both acceptance-commitment therapy and reality therapy significantly impacted covert relational aggression among women experiencing marital burnout during the post-test phase, and this effect was sustained in the follow-up phase (P < 0.05). In addition, the mean difference between the reality therapy group and the control group was greater than the mean difference between the acceptance and commitment therapy group and the control group. This indicates that acceptance and commitment therapy was more effective than reality therapy in reducing covert relational aggression among women experiencing marital burnout (P < 0.05).
Conclusion
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), through the use of dissociation, assists women experiencing marital burnout in distinguishing between the world they create in their thoughts and the ongoing process of thinking. Dissociation helps to differentiate between the individual who is thinking and the verbal categories that women assign to themselves through their thoughts. Consequently, women experiencing marital burnout have learned, through this approach, to detach from their thoughts. Clinging to these thoughts hinders their ability to confront the realities and challenges of life, preventing them from responding and reacting appropriately in various situations. Therefore, the strategies presented to women with marital burnout during therapy sessions assist them in recognizing dysfunctional thought patterns that contribute to covert relational aggression and in replacing these patterns with rational and effective alternatives. Therefore, it is logical to conclude that acceptance and commitment therapy is more effective than reality therapy in reducing covert relational aggression in women experiencing marital burnout. Based on the results of the present study, it can be concluded that acceptance and commitment therapy, as well as reality therapy, can be effective treatment methods for addressing covert relational aggression among women experiencing marital burnout in counseling centers.
Ethical Considerations
Compliance with Ethical Guidelines: In this study, ethical considerations were meticulously observed, including: obtaining informed consent from women with marital burnout to participate in therapeutic interventions; assuring participants that their responses would not be analyzed individually but as part of a group, with confidentiality guaranteed and no access granted to any third party; explaining the study process to all participants; informing them about the study's objectives, the harmlessness of the intervention, and its potential benefits; clarifying the expertise and qualifications of the intervention providers; assuring participants of the scientific foundation of the method; and notifying them of their right to withdraw freely at any stage of the study. women with marital burnout were also informed that a competent organization, such as the university, would oversee the research process. Additional measures included emphasizing the voluntary nature of the study, providing answers to their questions, offering access to the results upon request, and ensuring that intensive therapeutic sessions would be made available to the control group after the follow-up phase.
Funding: The study was conducted without the funding of any institution or organization.
Authors’ Contribution: The first author is the main researcher of this study. The second author is the supervisor and the third author as the advisor. This article is taken from a doctoral thesis of the first author.
Conflict of Interest: According to the authors, this article has no funding or conflict of interest.
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