Iranian Journal of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology
Year:2020 | Volume:26 | Issue:1|Papers Count:9

Objectives This study aimed to develop a premarital educational package based on based on 9-type personalities (Enneagram) to improve emotional expressiveness of couples preparing for marriage. Methods In this quasi-experimental study with pretest/posttest design, the study population consisted of all couples in the premarital stage referred to counseling centers in Isfahan, Iran during spring and summer 2017. Of these, 30 were selected and divided into two groups of intervention and control. They completed the Emotional Expressiveness Questionnaire (EEQ) before the study and 45 days after the end of intervention. The educational package was developed based on the study literature and techniques related to enneagram typology and considering its constructs, and then presented to the intervention at ten 90-min sessions once a week. Results The ANCOVA results indicated that the designed enneagram-based intervention could significantly affect the emotional expressiveness of the study couples. There was a significant difference between the scores of study groups after intervention (P<0. 05). Conclusion the designed enneagram-based educational package was effective in improving the emotional expressiveness of couples preparing for marriage through familiarity with the personality traits of themselves and their partner. These results are useful for professionals and those involved in premarital counseling to provide better services.

Objectives The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a death anxiety therapeutic package designed based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on death avoidance, mental health, and quality of life of cancer patients. Methods This parallel-experimental study was conducted on 28 cancer patients (19 females and 9 males aged 26-71 years) referred to Seyedoshohada Hospital in Isfahan, Iran. They were randomly assigned into two groups of intervention (n=14) and control (n=14). The death anxiety package was designed in the University of Nevada and Lawshe’, s method was used for examining its content validity ratio. The intervention group received therapy at seven sessions, once a week, while the control group received simple writing exercises with no intervention. Participants completed World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (α, =0. 91), Death Attitude Profile-Revised (α, =0. 88), and Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (α, =0. 87) three times as pretest, posttest, and follow-up assessments. Data were analyzed by ANCOVA in SPSS V. 21 software. Results The intervention group showed a significant decrease in death attitude dimensions of “, fear of death”,and “, death avoidance”,and a significant increase in the quality of life dimension of “, mental health”,compared to the control group. Conclusion The designed package based on ACT seems to reduce the death anxiety and death avoidance, and any change in attitude towards death in cancer patients may be related to their mental health.

Objectives The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of perceived stress, social support, and body image in predicting the severity of depressive symptoms in ostomy patients. Methods In this descriptive/correlational study with a cross-sectional design, 120 ostomy patients referred to the Iranian Ostomy Society were selected using a convenience sampling technique, and responded to The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, Body Image Questionnaire, and Social Support Scale. For data analysis, Pearson correlation and stepwise regression analysis were used. Results The three variables of perceived stress, body image and social support were able to predict the severity of depressive symptoms by %21, %10 and %11, respectively. In Overall, they accounted for 42% of changes in the severity of depressive symptoms. Conclusion Given the role of perceived stress, body image and social support in the severity of depression symptoms, the depression treatment and prevention programs should be facilitated for the patients with ostomy by considering these factors.

Objectives The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between emotion regulation dimensions and marital satisfaction along with assessing the moderating role of gender factor. Methods This is a descriptive/correlational study. Participants were 156 married couples living in Tehran, Iran who were recruited using a convenience sampling method. They were measured using the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) and Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS). In order to explore dyadic relationships, data were analyzed using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM). Results Both in husbands and wives, the emotion regulation ability was predictive of their marital satisfaction. Wives’,scores in all 6 dimensions of emotion regulation and their husbands’,scores in all dimensions except in “, awareness”,was positively associated with their marital satisfaction. Acceptance of emotions, goal-directed behavior, impulse control, and access to regulation strategies in men predicted their wives’,marital satisfaction, while impulse control, access to regulation strategies, and understanding of emotions in women predicted their husbands’,marital satisfaction. The results did not support the moderating role of gender. Conclusion The findings highlight the importance of focus on emotion regulation and its multiple dimensions in assessment and treatment of problems in couples. The use of dyadic data analysis is recommended to better understand the interpersonal phenomena.

Objectives Dementia is a common disease in the elderly and imposes a heavy care burden on family members. Many factors can be associated with care burden. One of these factors can be the caregivers’,Spiritual Well-Being (SWB). This study aimed to examine the relationship between SWB and care burden in caregivers of dementia patients. Methods This correlational study was conducted on 60 caregivers (75% female and 25% male with a mean age of 47 years) of patients with dementia referred to Rasoul-e-Akram Hospital and Brain & Cognitive Clinics in Tehran, Iran in 2019. Samples were selected using purposive and convenience sampling methods. The caregivers were evaluated by using the Caregiver Burden Questionnaire and SWB Scale and a socio-demographic checklist. Data were analyzed by using Pearson's correlation coefficient and multiple linear regression analysis in SPSS software at the significance level of P<0. 05. Results About 16. 7% of caregivers had little care burden, 35% had moderate to severe burden, 25% moderate burden and 23. 3% severe burden. Moreover, 1. 7% had poor SWB, 66. 7% moderate SWB and 31. 7% high SWB. The care burden had a negative and non-significant relationship with religious dimension of SWB (r=-0. 089, P=0. 505), and a negative and significant relationship with existential dimension of SWB (r=-0. 283, P=0. 032). Linear regression model revealed that existential dimension had a relationship with care burden (β, =-0. 298, P=0. 023) and explained 9% of variation in care burden. Conclusion SWB plays an important role in improving the overall health of caregivers. in addition to being one of determinant of care burden, it acts as a factor in enhancing other aspects of health. Overall, caregiving is a stressful job,being aware of positive topics such as spirituality helps therapists provide strategies for caregivers to reduce their stress and care burden.

Objectives This study aimed to predict the suicide ideation based on the attentional bias in clinical and non-clinical populations. Methods Participants were 120 individuals (77 women and 43 men, age range 18-40 years) who were purposively selected and divided into three groups of clinical-suicidal (n=40), clinical non-suicidal (n=40) and non-clinical (n=40). They were measured by Suicide Stroop Test and Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (BSS). Three indices of attentional bias including reaction time, time interference and interference ratio were calculated and the data were analyzed using paired-samples t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient and multivariate regression analysis at the 95% confidence level. Results There was no significant difference in the mean reaction time means between all types of Stroop test (positive emotional, negative emotional, and suicide) in comparison with the neutral Stroop (P<0. 05). Suicide ideation was significantly correlated with the overall reaction time in the positive emotional Stroop (r=0. 32, P<0. 001), negative emotional Stroop (r=0. 27, P<0. 01), suicide Stroop (r=0. 28, P<0. 01) and with the interference time of the non-clinical group in the suicide Stroop (r=0. 33, P<0. 05). In other cases, the relationships between variables were not statistically significant (P>0. 05). Regression analysis based on the overall mean scores showed that age (β, =-0. 225), gender (β, =0. 223), clinical conditions (β, =0. 224) and recent suicide attempt (β, =0. 424) explaining 44% of the variances, were significant predcitors of suicide ideation, while the attentional bias indices failed to play any significant role in predicting suicide ideation (P>0. 05). Conclusion It seems that the incidence of attentional bias towards suicide-related information is not related to clinical conditions, and the relationship between attentional bias and suicide ideation does not follow a certain pattern. Factors such as age, gender, clinical status, and past suicidal behaviors are important predictors of suicide ideation, but attentional bias indicators cannot predict suicide ideation.

Objectives This aim of this study was to qualitatively study the obese patients’,experiences of interpersonal relationships after bariatric surgery. Methods This is a qualitative research. The study population consisted of all patients who had undergone bariatric surgery at least two years ago referred to the obesity clinic of Rasoul-e-Akram Hospital. Of these, 11 patients were selected using a purposive sampling method and underwent semi structured interviews. Data were analysed using thematic analysis method in MAXQDA 10 software. Results The results were classified into one main category and four subcategories. The main category was related to the changes in interpersonal relationships. Bariatric surgery affected family relationships, marital relationships, professional relationships, and relationships with friends. It changed family relationships especially in married patients. In couples who both suffered from obesity, changes in physical appearance after surgery caused conflicts in bilateral relationships. Conclusion Bariatric surgery causes significant changes in interpersonal relationships. It improves the relationship between family members, especially spouses, although it can create different feelings at the same time. People after bariatric surgery may need the help of specialists such as a psychiatrist to regulate their interpersonal relationships.

Objectives This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of affective-reconstructive couple therapy in increasing the trust in close relationships and marital satisfaction of couples with remarriage and divorce experience. Methods This is a single-case experimental study with a non-concurrent multiple baseline design. Three distressed couples were selected from among couples with remarriage and divorce experience referred to private and government counseling centers in Ahvaz, Iran, based on inclusion/exclusion criteria using purposive sampling method during September-December 2018, They participated at eight sessions of affective-reconstructive couple therapy, once a week each 90 minutes. They completed the Trust in Close Interpersonal Relationships Questionnaire and Marital Satisfaction Scale before and after treatment, and at the follow-up period. The data analysis was conducted by using visual analysis (graph drawing), reliable change index, recovery rate formula (increase rate), and normative comparison methods. Results Affective-reconstructive couple therapy increased the trust in close relationships and marital satisfaction in couples after treatment and at the follow-up period. Conclusion Affective-reconstructive couple therapy, due to special attention to the couples’,past relationships and increasing their insight into the causes of distress development in relationship can increase the trust in close relationships and marital satisfaction in remarried couples with divorce experience.

Objectives: The current research study aims at investigating the illness experience of people affected by Pulmonary Hypertension (PH), as a particularly challenging rare disease that is paradigmatic for the understanding of regulatory processes. Methods: The study used Giorgi’, s method to analyze the illness narratives of 11 adult Italian women affected by PH according to a qualitative phenomenological approach. An object relations perspective looking at chronic illness as an internal object was adopted for result interpretation. Results: Four general themes were identified that characterize illness narratives of people with PH and illustrate the progressive stages of the disease. They respectively deal with the body/mind disruption at symptom onset, the protagonization of illness in the search for a diagnosis, the complicated grief at the time of diagnosis, and the anaclitic strategies to face the future. Conclusion: Findings make a significant contribution to the exploration of the subjective experience of people with PH in managing illness-related challenges from symptom onset to after diagnosis.