JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY
Year:2014 | Volume:6 | Issue:3 (23)|Papers Count:12

Introduction: High blood pressure is one of chronic diseases that has much considered because of efficacy on other disorders and increase of mortality in life of human.The purpose of this study was evaluating of efficacy of mixed therapy of stress management training with spiritual therapy on blood pressure, anxiety and quality of life in patients with high blood pressure.Method: This study research design was quasi-experimental and the plan was pre-test post-test with control group. The study population consisted all of patients with high blood pressure of Kermanshah Health Therapeutic centers. The statistical sample included 30 cases that located by two groups of experimental and control randomly. To select cases, available sampling manner used. All of samples had high anxiety and low quality of life. To assess anxiety, quality of life and blood pressure used Cattle’s Anxiety scale, World Health Organization Quality of Life and manometer respective. Experimental group received mixed of 8 educating session stress management training with spiritual therapy in addition to pharmaceutical Therapy but control group continued pharmaceutical Therapy. Anxiety, quality of life, systolic and diastolic blood pressure recorded before and after training.Results: The data analyzed by MANCOVA and ANCOVA showed that stress management training with spiritual therapy reduced systolic blood pressure, anxiety and increased quality of life but it didn’t efficacy on diastolic blood pressure of patients with high blood pressure significantly.Conclusion: Based on research findings, stress management training with spiritual therapy as a useful method of improvement of anxiety, quality of life and blood pressure in patients with high blood pressure.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of Applied Relaxation Training based on Mindfulness and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy on Anxiety Sensitivity of women with Generalized Anxiety Disorder.Method: The participants were 60 women who were suffering from generalized anxiety disorder. They were placed in experimental and control groups following the experimental design of pre-test and post-test with a control group. The participants of groups responded to Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire-IV and GAD-7 and anxiety sensitivity Inventory. The experimental groups received the training for 16 sessions. At the end of treatment period and three month after that, the participants of groups again responded to Questionnaires. To analyze research data, Mixed Repeated Measures were used.Results: The results showed that decrease in Fear of Publicly Observable Anxiety Reaction and Fear of Cognitive Discontrol (AR and CBT), Fear of Cardiovascular Symptom and Fear of Respiratory (only AR) subscales were observed after psychotherapies in post-test and follow up phase. Also finding showed psychotherapies in fear of publicly observable anxiety reaction had highest partial eta squared.Conclusion: These results provide strong evidence for changes in anxiety sensitivity during CBT and AR influence in generalized anxiety disorder symptoms. Overall the results of research showed anxiety sensitivity is as an important factor of personality that changes with training.

Introduction: As aggression has destructive consequences on aggressive adolescents and their relatives, this study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) on aggression reduction in adolescents.Method: The design was Quasi-experimental with pretest-posttest groups. The statistical sample included 24 aggressive adolescents who were selected from the boarding schools, using their scores in Aggression Scale Buss and Perry (AG) and then, were randomly divided between two control and experimental groups. The instrument applied in this research was a 29-items questionnaire, which assesses dimensions and total aggression. The criteria for being included in the study were an aggression score, one standard deviation above the average score in adolescents and also the participation of adolescents in training sessions. The therapeutic method was an 8-session therapeutic program, according to Miller manual.Results: According to the research findings, dialectical behavior therapy reduced global aggression in adolescents. The behavioral, cognitive and emotional dimensions of adolescents’ aggression were studied based on MANCOVA test; the only significant component was emotional dimension.Conclusion: Group Dialectical Behavior Therapy reduces adolescents' aggression by affecting the emotional dimension. However, DBT isn't sufficient for decreasing behavioral and cognitive dimensions of aggression in 8-session period. It needs a comprehensive intervention for decreasing the other two dimensions. This issue notices planning and implementation of comprehensive interventions for aggressive adolescents.

Introduction: Many biological and psychological processes could be effective in drug abuse. The aim of the present research was to determine the relationship of mindfulness skills and metacognitive beliefs with interpersonal reactivity of substance abusers.Method: The research sample consisted of 100 who were selected from among the substance abuser that referred to clinical of addiction withdrawal through the available sampling method in the Ardabil city. To collect the data, Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness, Meta-cognition Questionnaire and Interpersonal Reactivity Index were used.Results: The results showed that mindfulness skills(r =-0.42) and metacognitive beliefs (r =-0.34) are related to interpersonal reactivity in substance abusers. The results of multiple regression showed positive beliefs about worry (B=- 0.346), cognitive self-consciousness (B=- 0.353), and negative beliefs about the uncontrollability of thoughts (B=- 0.301) found to be predictors for interpersonal reactivity in substance abusers. Between mindfulness skills subscales observation (B= 0/403) and accept without judgment (B= 0.346), were found to be the best predictors for interpersonal reactivity.Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that the role of metacognitive beliefs and mindfulness skills predicted moderate reactivity to interpersonal reactivity in substance abusers. On based of this, clinicians must be use for coping with substance abuse of metacognition beliefs and mindfulness skills.

Introduction: Attentional bias refers to grasping of attention by a stimulus in competition with others. The literature emphasizes on importance of attentional bias to addiction-related cues in drug following and relapse. In this paper, attentional bias modification used for decreasing attentional bias in smokers. Besides, the operant conditioning was combined with attentional bias modification method for the first time.Method: The design of this paper was experimental. Attentional bias of three groups (control, attentional bias modification and attentional bias modification with reinforcement and punishment) each consisting of 20 participant, was assessed in three times (pre-test, post-test and follow up). Between pre-test and post-test, the control group received a neutral training; while the second group received attentional bias modification training and the third group received attentional bias modification training with reinforcement and punishment, respectively. Dot-probe task was used for assessing, attentional bias modification and attentional bias modification with reinforcement and punishment.Results: The results indicated that there was a significant difference between three groups in attentional bias at post-test, the group of attentional bias modification with reinforcement and punishment had the least of attentional bias and the group of control had the highest attentional bias. Also, there was a significant difference between control group and two experimental groups, but there was not any difference between attentional bias modification group and attentional bias modification with reinforcement and punishment group in attentional bias in follow up.Conclusion: Basis on this paper, attentional bias modification is a significant and efficient intervention. Also, the operant conditioning could be added to classical method successfully. The research and clinical implications of this method was mentioned. This paper’s finding suggests more investigation on this new method for the other addiction disorders in future research.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to construction and validation of a scale to measure self-discovery based on different theories of personality in the students of Semnan College.Method: The present study was descriptive and of correlation studies' type. For this purpose, 350 students were selected by multi-stage cluster sampling method & answered researcher-made instruments of self-discovery scale (SDS), Rosenberg Self-esteem, & Beck depression and anxiety. Factor analysis method, Cranach’s alpha coefficient and The Pearson correlation was used to analyze the data.Results: The factor analysis results showed that the researcher- made scale (SDS) measures four factors including self-consciousness, attraction, Personal Growth and the transcendence. Also Pearson correlation results showed that the self-discovery has meaningful relationship with self-esteem (r=0.317 & p£.01), anxiety (r=-0.266 & p£.01) and depression (r=-0.380 & p≤.01). Furthermore, self-discovery scale validity obtained 0.89 by Cranach’s alpha coefficient for the total scale, and each of the subscales, including self-consciousness, 0.89, attraction, 0.89, Personal Growth, 0.88 and transcendence, 0.84.Conclusion: The research Findings show that SDS has acceptable psychometrics properties in the student universe and can be used as reliable and valid instrument in psychological researches.

Introduction: Everyday functioning is an important outcome for studies of the developmental psychopathology of adolescence. An unbiased, well-validated, and easy-to-use instrument to specifically assess normal adolescent functioning is not yet available. The main purpose of the present study was to investigate factorial structure of Farsi version of the Multidimensional Adolescent Functioning Scale.Method: 479 adolescences (234 boys and 245 girls), who were selected through multistage sampling, completed the Multidimensional Adolescent Functioning Scale. The confirmatory factor analysis method was used to compute the MAFS factorial validity.Results: The results of confirmatory factor analysis showed that the hypothesized 3-factor structure consisted on general functioning, family related functioning and peer related functioning fits well to the MAFS data. Internal consistency for the MAFS scales was good.Conclusion: In conclusion, the MAFS is instrument with good psychometric properties, which could be suitable for a broad range of future research application, especially when a multidimensional and unbiased indication of normal adolescent functioning is required.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was validation of the Addiction Susceptibility Questionnaire (ASQ) by examining the factor structure and internal consistency with exploratory factor analysis in Iran adolescent's population.Method: Participants were 5884 high school adolescents. The participants were 14-20 years of age and were chosen using cluster random sampling method from 5 Cities in Iran (Uremia, Tehran, Ahwaz, Mashhad and Zanjan).Results: The results showed that 50 item of the questionnaires were loading in 10 factors of Inner Dissatisfaction, Risk behaviors, Non-reliability, Show off, Positive thoughts about substance, Dissatisfaction with family, Low Faith and Spirituality, Deviation from the norm, Self-centered, Risky relationships with friends With factor loadings between.30 and.80. The reliability of the questionnaire was estimated in range of.68 to.83.Conclusion: Factor structure and reliability of internal consistency of the Addiction Susceptibility Questionnaire- adolescents Version (ASQ-AV) was suitable. The ASQ-AV to have highly reliable measure of addiction susceptibility by adolescents and it is appropriate for both female and male adolescents in clinical, educational and research settings.

Introduction: In the present study the behavior management program for mothers of deaf children with behavior problems has been developed. In addition, the effectiveness of this program on reduction of mothers stress has been investigated.Method: Design of the current study was quasi experimental design-pretest-posttest with control group. The universe of population of the study was consisted of mothers of hearing impaired children with cochlear implantation who had aberrant behaviors. These children were under protection of center for cochlear implantation and rehabilitation in capital city of Tehran. Sample of study was 20 mothers of deaf children who had aberrant behaviors were selected by means of accessible sampling procedure. To gather information about children’s aberrant behaviors preschool from of Achenbach Behavior Problem Checklist was used. In addition parent stress index was used to measure parent’s stresses. Intervention protocol was developed using literature and interviews with mothers. Mothers in experimental group were assigned to treatment group of the session and each session lasted for two hours. Control group was assigned to the ongoing activities in the center. After two months follow up measures were administered to assess maintenance of the behavior change.Results: The result of analysis with multivariate analysis and repeated measure indicated that there was a significant difference between means of experimental and control groups with respect to stress in mothers.Conclusion: Parent stresses were reduced as a result of intervention and the reduction maintained across time. Therefore, by taking the research aims and objectives into consideration, we can apply this training program to reduce the deaf children mother’s stress.