INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY (IPA)
Year:2018 | Volume:12 | Issue:1|Papers Count:10

This study aimed to determine the efficacy of acceptance and commitment based therapy (ACT) on depressive symptoms and cognitive emotion regulation strategies in depressive students. The research method was a quasi-experimental study with a pre test, post test, follow-up design and a control group. The sample was selected by multistage sampling and included 40 students who were matched by age, educational status, lack of mental or physical diseases, clinical interviews and by scoring over 19 on the Beck Depression Inventory, Second Edition (BDI-II) along with other criteria considered in this research. The participants were randomly divided into a control and an experimental group. The research instruments included the BDI-II and cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire (CERQ). The experimental group received eight sessions of ACT and the control group did not receive intervention. The results showed a significant difference between groups in terms of depression and CER strategies (p<. 01). The rate of depression and negative CER strategies in the experimental group was significant lower than in the pre-test and control group and their positive CER strategies were significantly higher. These results were persisted significantly to the follow-up period. The present study showed that ACT effectively reduced depressive symptoms and negative CER strategies and increased positive CER strategies in depressive students.

The main purpose of this study was to predict cyber bullying (email and online) through the components of the adversity quotient (perceived control, origin and ownership, reach and endurance). The population in this study comprised all employees of a big public organization in Tehran in winter 2015 (1393). Among them, 271 persons were selected on the basis of convenience sampling method. Data were collected through the Adversity Quotient Profile (PEAK Learning Inc., 2008) and the Cyber Bullying Questionnaire (Savage, 2012), and analysed using Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis. The results indicated significant negative relationships between all the components of the Adversity Quotient (perceived control, origin and ownership, reach and endurance) with Cyber Bullying (p<. 05). Furthermore, the results of multiple regression analysis showed that the components of perceived control (F=48. 2, P<. 05) and reach (F=28. 2, p<. 01) could significantly predict cyber bullying.

The purpose of this study was to test a model of causal relationships of family communication patterns (conversation and conformity), metacognition and personality traits (openness to experience and conscientiousness) with critical thinking disposition mediated by epistemic beliefs of female high school students in Ahvaz in 2016. The sample consisted of 402 high school students, who were selected by a multi-stage random sampling method. In this study, five questionnaires were used for collecting data, Family Communication Patterns of Koerner and Fitzpatrick, Metacognitive Awareness of Schraw and Dennison, NEO Five-Factor Questionnaire, Epistemic Beliefs of Bayless, and Critical Thinking Disposition of Ricketts. The structural equation modeling (SEM) method was used for analyzing the data. The results showed that all the path coefficients were statistically significant. The relationships of conversation, metacognition, conscientiousness, openness to experience, and epistemic beliefs with critical thinking disposition were positive and significant, and the relationship of conformity with critical thinking disposition was significant but negative. The model fit indices showed that the model fitted the data properly (CMIN = 273. 649, df = 50, CMIN / df = 5. 473 (P <. 001), GFI =. 90, AGFI =. 83, NFI =. 91, IFI =. 92, TLI =. 89, CFI =. 92, NFI =. 91, and RMSEA =. 09). The indirect paths were also tested using the bootstrap procedure of Preacher and Hayes. The results indicated that all the indirect hypotheses had been confirmed.

Time perspective therapy is a therapy based on the time perspective theory and it aims to balance the time perspective. Since depressed patients usually have a distorted time perspective, it has been hypothesized that this kind of therapy may help them. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of time perspective therapy on depression symptoms. Eight female depressed patients entered the group therapy and were compared with a control group of eight female patients. Both groups were asked to answer the Beck Depression Inventory in a pretest phase. Then the patients in the experimental group attended group therapy for six sessions. After that, both groups were asked to answer the same questionnaire in the post-test phase. The results showed that patients who entered the group therapy became significantly better compared with the control group. The findings suggest that time perspective therapy can be effective in reducing depressive symptoms in depressed female students.

The purpose of present study was to ascertain the relationship of emotional intelligence and quality of work life, and also to compare these two variables between Iranian and Indian university employees. A total of 400 university employees (200 employees from University of Sistan and Baluchestan and 200 employees from Delhi University) were selected at random for this study. Emotional Quotient Questionnaire and Quality of Work Life Scale were used for data collection. For analyzing the data, Pearson correlation coefficient, Multiple Stepwise Regression, independent samples t– test and One Way MANOVA was applied. The results demonstrated high scores of emotional intelligence were associated with higher scores of job and career, working conditions, and overall quality of work life. But emotional intelligence was not significantly correlated with general well-being, stress at work, control at work, and home work interface sub– scales. Job and career was a unique predictor for emotional intelligence in both samples. The results also indicated that employees of Sistan and Baluchestan University reported slightly higher emotional intelligence, job and career, general well-being, home– work interface, working conditions, and overall scores of quality of work life, in comparison to employees of Delhi University.

Attachment styles are considered important not only for adults’ close relationships but also for individual’ s well-being, reflecting the subjective quality of life, covering positive mood, vitality, and interest in things. Emotion regulation is considered to be in direct relation with these variables and expected to play a mediating role in the association between attachment and well-being. The aim of this study was to obtain better insight into the associations between attachment styles and subjective well-being, by testing the possible mediating role of emotion regulation skill. The methodology employed in this study was descriptive methodology. Sample demographics were 130 students of University of Isfahan, Iran, who were selected based on multi-stage simple sampling method. Direct effects of attachment styles on emotion regulation skill were all significant (p<. 05). Direct effects of secure and avoidance styles on SWB were both significant (p<. 05). Indirect effects of attachment styles on SWB were all significant (p<. 05). Indirect effects of avoidance style on SWB was-0. 11, indirect effects of secure style on SWB was 0. 4, and indirect effects of ambivalence style on SWB was-. 21 (p<. 05). Model fit indices were: CMIN/DF= 1. 69, GFI=. 84, CFI=. 96, PCFI=. 83, REMSEA=. 07, and HOELTER= 91. Emotion regulation skill has the mediating role in the relation between attachment styles and subjective well-being.

Academic engagement explains the extent to which learners identify with and value academic conclusions, and take part in academic and non-academic activities. The present study explores, quantitatively, a causal model of both psycho-social and motivational factors in academic engagement and their potential impacts on academic achievement outcome. The sample of this research consisted of 480 undergraduate students at Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran who were selected by stratified random sampling method. The instruments which used in this study were The Academic Success Inventory, Boekaerts‟ Motivation control scale (1987), Kuhl's Action Control scale (ACS-90) (1994), Pintrich et al. 's Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) (1991), Schraw & Dennison's Metacognitive awareness inventory (MAI) (1994), Boekaerts' Intended/actual goals scale (1987), Zimbardo & Boyd's future time perception inventory (ZPTI) (1999), & Schaufeli, et al‟ s Academic Engagement scale (2002). Structural equation modeling (SEM) through AMOS-22 was used for data analysis. The results indicated that motivational control– emotional states & competencies, self-efficacy, metacognition, action control– initiative persistence & disengage persistence-had significant effects on academic engagement. Also academic engagement can affect academic performance mediating by learner's intended/actual goals and future time perception in the current model. There is credence then, from our point of view, that policymakers and educators should consider advancing conceptualized complex psychosocial-motivational models to verify.

This study is aimed at investigating aspects of personality effects and perceived social support on marital instability regarding the mediating role of occupational stress among married female nurses in Shiraz hospitals. Utilizing Cochran’ s formula as sample population and random sampling method for selection, among female nurses with at least three years of marriage (2245 nurses), 246 nurses was calculated. According to this method, all sample nurses had equal chance to be selected. Data collection was carried out usingfour standard questionnaires of NEO personality inventory (Costa & McCrae, 1986), the multidimensional scale of perceived social support (Zimet et al, 1988), nurse job stress inventory (Gray-Toft & Anderson, 1981) and marital instability questionnaire (Booth et al., 1983). The descriptive analysis was done by SPSS 16 and LISREL structural equations were used to validate the model. The results showed that majority of subjects have a consistent and conscientious character, high social support and moderate occupational stress. They had the lowest marital instability with 22% possibility of divorce. The correlation test results showed that neuroticism has a positive relationship and other aspects of personality have a negative relationship with the marriages instability. The perceived social support has a negative relationship and the occupational stress has a positive relationship with marital instability. Structural equation modeling results showed that the conceptual model had a good fitting. Therefore, the aspects of personality and perceived social support had a direct and indirect impact on marital instability. Finally, the personality aspects were determined as the most important prediction variable of marital instability in nurses.

The present research aims to investigate the relationship between belief in a just world (BJW) and the symptoms of psychological disorders given the intermediate role of coping strategies in burn patients. A total of 170 burn patients were selected from Rasht Burn Incident Center via random sampling and were introduced to the research. They filled the following psychological disorder questionnaires: Symptom Checklist-90 Revised (SCL-90-R), Belief in a Just World Scale (Sutton & Douglas, 2005) and Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS) (Endler & Parker, 1990). The methodology of the research was the examination of correlation, and the proposed model was analyzed by means of structural equation modeling (SEM). Bootstrap technique was adopted to test the mediating effects in the proposed model. The results showed that BJW has a negative significant effect on psychological disorder symptoms in burn patients. Moreover, BJW has a positive significant effect on problem-focused coping strategy; however, it has a negative significant effect on emotion-focused and avoidance-focused coping strategies. The findings of the present study demonstrate the intermediate role of problem-, emotion-and avoidance-focused coping strategies in the relationship between BJW and symptoms of psychological disorders in burn patients.

This study investigates the mediating role of time perspective in the relationship between self-efficacy and the tendency toward substance abuse in adolescent girls. A total of 405 adolescent high school girls in Tehran (mean age: 16; SD: 1. 01) completed the Sherer general self-efficacy questionnaire, Zimbardo time perspective inventory, and the addiction potential scale. The results indicated that a low level of self-efficacy, high levels of past negative perspective, present hedonistic, and present fatalistic perspectives, low levels of past positive perspective, and futurism predicted an increase in the tendency toward substance abuse among adolescents. On the other hand, the time perspective mediated the relationship between the tendency toward substance abuse and self-efficacy. The findings showed the importance of self-efficacy instruction in primary programs designed to prevent drug abuse among adolescents. Moreover, the preventive programs should include measures to create a balanced time perspective that is, increasing futurism and past positive perspectives, and reducing present hedonistic, present fatalistic, and past negative perspectives.