Assessment and Research in Applied Counseling
Year:2021 | Volume:3 | Issue:3 (9)|Papers Count:6

Background and Aim: Adaptation problems in children with hearing impairment require therapeutic interventions. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of painting-based art therapy on the aggressive behavior of female students with hearing impairment. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest design, control and experimental groups, and a three-month follow-up. The statistical population included female students with hearing impairment who were studying in special schools of Shahrekord in the academic year 2019-2020, from which 30 students who met the inclusion criteria were selected by the convenient sampling method and assigned to the experimental group (n = 15) and the control group (n = 15) after matching. The experimental group received a painting therapy package for 15 sessions, and the control group received no intervention. All subjects were assessed in the pre-test and post-test stages by Buss and Perry's (1992) Aggression Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA and SPSS 24 software. Results: The results indicated that painting-based art therapy reduced aggressive behavior and the components of anger, verbal aggression, and resentment both in the post-test and follow-up stages (P<0. 01). Conclusion: According to the results, painting-based art therapy is recommended to therapists in the field of children with special needs as an effective psychotherapy method to reduce the clinical signs of aggressive behavior disorder in students.

Background and Aim: Marital conflicts negatively affect couple relationships, and consequently, family relationships. Although several studies have been conducted on marital conflict, no study has examined the effect of object relations couple therapy on the emotional expressiveness of couples with marital conflict. So, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of object relations couple therapy on the emotional expressiveness and marital intimacy of couples with marital conflict. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest design, a control group, and a two-month follow-up. The statistical population included 192 couples who referred to Hekmat Va Saadat Counseling Centers in the first six months of 2019, from which 40 couples who received lower scores than the cut-off points of 40 were selected by the convenient sampling method after screening with King and Emmons (1990) Emotional Expressiveness Questionnaire and randomly assigned to the object relations couple therapy experimental group (10 couples) and the control group (10 couples). The experimental group received the Donovan (2013) object relations couple therapy intervention for eight 90-minute sessions, and the control group received no intervention. Data were analyzed using repeatedmeasures ANOVA. Results: The results showed that object relations couple therapy intervention had an effect on positive emotional expressiveness (P=0. 001, F= 114. 76), intimacy emotional expressiveness (P=0. 001, F=228. 85), and negative emotional expressiveness (P=0. 001, F=34. 88) and that this effect was stable at the follow-up stage. Conclusion: The results suggest evidence that object relations couple therapy intervention is a suitable method to increase positive emotional expressiveness and intimacy emotional expressiveness and reduce negative emotional expressiveness in couples with marital conflict.

Background and Aim: The official international language is English, which is a means of communication between different nations to achieve communication and academic goals, and it is mainly involved in creating communication between people. Students' progress in learning English is directly affected by the quality and expertise of teachers. Teachers' educational competence can be affected by various factors, including creativity and mindfulness. Accordingly, this study was conducted to examine the interaction between creativity, mindfulness, educational competence in TEFL and non-TEFL graduates. Methods: This was a correlational study for which 318 teachers were selected by simple random sampling. Data were collected using the Ryan (2014) Creativity Skills Training Questionnaire and the Bauer et al. (2004) Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficients and simple regression. Results: The results indicated that there was a significant relationship between creativity and educational competence in TEFL and non-TEFL graduates (P = 0. 05). Moreover, there was a significant positive relationship between mindfulness and educational competence in the TEFL group (P = 0. 01). However, there was no significant difference between these factors in the non-TEFL group (P <0. 05). The results also suggested that there was a significant positive relationship between mindfulness and creativity in TEFL and non-TEFL groups (P = 0. 01) and that there was a significant difference between the two groups (TEFL and nonTEFL teachers) in terms of educational competence (P = 0. 01). Conclusion: According to the findings, it can be concluded that educational background directly affects mindfulness. This study can help TEFL and non-TEFL teachers in different ways and update their knowledge. It also makes teachers think that creativity in teaching, mindfulness, and educational competence can help the class progress.

Background and Aim: According to Satir's pattern, couples' messaging style expresses their sense of personal worth. Dysfunctional messaging and communication (indirect, vague, incomplete, distorted, inappropriate, and inconsistent) are the hallmarks of a malfunctioning family system. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of Satir brief family therapy on alexithymia and emotional maturity in couples seeking a divorce. Methodology: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pretestposttest design, a control group, and a two-month follow-up. The statistical population included all couples seeking a divorce referred to Kashan Omid Counseling Center in the second half of 2020, i. e., 100 couples, from which 40 couples were selected by the convenient sampling method after screening using the Sink and Bhargava (1984) Emotional Maturity Scale and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale and randomly assigned to the Satir family therapy experimental group (10 couples) and the control group (10 couples). The experimental group received Satir intervention for 90-minute eight sessions, and the control group received no intervention. Data were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA. Results: The results showed that Satir family therapy intervention affected emotional maturity (P = 0. 001, F = 180. 40) and alexithymia (P = 0. 001, F = 267. 72) and that this effect was stable at the follow-up stage. Conclusion: The results suggest evidence that Satir family therapy intervention is a suitable method to reduce alexithymia and improve the stability of emotional maturity in couples with marital problems.

Background and Aim: The study of couples' relationships helps to clarify the structural frameworks in which these relationships are formed. One of the dimensions of this relationship is the primary marital relationship that couples use when faced with marital problems. Accordingly, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of Halford couple relationship education (CRE) on the spouse preservation behaviors and the primary marital relationship in young couples in Kermanshah. Methods: This was a quasiexperimental study with a pretest-posttest design and a one-month followup in which 30 couples were selected by the convenient sampling method from couples referring to comprehensive urban health service centers in Kermanshah and randomly assigned to the experimental group (15 couples) and the control group (15 couples). After the pre-test, the experimental group received the Halford couple relationship education intervention for six weeks, one session per week, and all subjects were assessed in the pre-test, post-test, and follow-up stages using the Buss et al. (2008) Spouse Preservation Behavior Scale and the Navran (1967) Primary Communication Inventory (PCI). Data were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA. Results: The results indicated that Halford relationship education was significantly effective and improved spouse preservation behaviors (F = 5. 32, P = 0. 029) and primary marital relationship (P = 0. 001, F = 85. 21) up to the follow-up stage. Conclusion: The results of this study can provide useful information about this type of couple training for counselors and helpers to improve relationships between spouses.

Background and Aim: Due to the high prevalence of chronic pain in society and its comprehensive effects on the lives of patients, metacognitive beliefs and resilience significantly affect the level of adaptation of these people. So, this study was conducted to investigate the role of metacognitive beliefs and resilience on predicting marital adjustment in both groups of patients with chronic and acute pain. Methods: This was a descriptive correlational study. The statistical sample of the study included both groups of patients with chronic pain (n = 60) and healthy individuals (n = 60) who were selected by the convenient sampling method and evaluated using the Wells (1997) Metacognition Questionnaire, the ConnorDavidson (2003) Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), and the Spanier (1976) Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS). Results: The regression results indicated that both variables of metacognitive beliefs and resilience were included in the model in the group of patients with acute pain. The standard regression coefficient of resilience was higher than that of metacognitive beliefs. Therefore, marital adjustment was more affected by resilience than metacognitive beliefs (metacognitive beliefs (B =-0. 356, P = 0. 002) and resilience (B = 0. 412, P <0. 001). In the group of patients with chronic pain, only the variable of resilience could predict marital adjustment (resilience (B = 0. 388, P = 0. 002). Conclusion: Metacognitive beliefs and resilience are good predictors of marital adjustment and significantly affect marital adjustment in both groups of patients with chronic and acute pain. If resilience and metacognitive belief both play a role together, the pain will affect the individual less and lead to greater adjustment. So, in addition to resilience, the level of metacognitive beliefs of people with chronic pain should be raised.