Journal of Psychology
Year:2008 | Volume:12 | Issue:1(45)|Papers Count:10

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between happiness, dogmatism-flexibility and demographic variables in Isfahan population. Therefore, in the format of a correlation research design, 80 male and 80 female subjects were selected from Isfahan city, using cluster random sampling. All subjects responded to the items of the Oxford Happiness Inventory the, Dogmatism Scale (a = 0.70) and a demographic questionnaire. Data were analyzed by Pearson's correlation coefficient, regression and covariate. It was hypothesized that there would be significant relations between all the variables. The results showed that there was a significant positive correlation between happiness and flexibility (p<0.01). There was also a significant negative correlation between happiness and family size (p<0.01). Further, the results revealed that family size significantly predicted 8.4% of happiness, (p< 0.01). Therefore, it was concluded that the more flexibility increases and the more family size decreases, the more happiness increases.

The role of metacognition in development and maintenance of obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder has gained prominence through the information processing model advanced by Wells and Mathews. The aim of the present research was to compare the metacognitive beliefs and dimentions of perfectionism of the patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder in intraction with uncertainty. The sample consisted of 127 subjects in three groups: Those who were diagnosed as obsessive-compulsive disorder (43 subjects) and post-traumatic stress disorder (43 subjects) selected from psychiatric clinics in Tehran city, and a non-patient group (41 subjects). The participants completed the short form of the Metacognition Questionniare, the Perfectionism of Multidimentions Scale and the Intolerance of Uncertainly Scale. Results showed that the patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder had higher levels of dysfunctional meta cognitive beliefs than the patients with post-traumatic stress disorder and the non-patient subjects. Also, the results showed that the patients with obsessive compulsive disorder and those with posttraumatic stress disorder had higher levels of dimentions of perfectionism than the nonpatient subjects. Group and uncertainty in traction was significant for perfectionism (p<0.10), but it was not significant for metacognitive beliefs.

The aim of this research was to study the effects of behavioral cognitive therapy and cognitive therapy with religious orientations on depression and T lymphocyts response to PHA in mitogen. 60 depressive patients were selected and randomly divided in 60 two groups (30 patients in each group). Two groups were matched for age, education, sex and economical status. For the first group, behavioral cognitive therapy was used for 12 sessions. For the second group, both behavioral cognitive therapy and religious strategies were applied. The rate of depression and T lymphocyts’ response to PHA in mitogen was assessed in three stages: Before and after the intervention and after six months as the follow- up period. The results revealed that there was a significant difference between the rate of depression and T lymphocyts response to PHA in mitogen before and after the final sessions of therapy and also after the follow upperiod. The results also indicated that although the rate of depression decreased in the two groups, while the T Iymphocyts response to PHA increased, but, the effects of religious strategies on depression lymphocyts response to PHA were significantly better than those of behavioral cognitive therapy. Further were, it was found that religious strategies had significant effects on the hyperactivity of T cells to PHA mitogen stimulation, i.e. they reduce the rate of depression.

Chronic pain is a multidimensional phenomenon uniquely experienced by each patient. Within this perspective of pain, the knowledge regarding a patient's appraisals of his/her experience of pain and the impact of pain on daily activities become critical for accurate evaluation of treatment outcome. The West-Haven Multidimensional Pain Inventory (MPI) has been developed to measure the patients' perspective about their pain experience. This study examined the reliability and validity of a Farsi translation of the two first sections of the MPI, MPI-F on a population of 231 subjects with chronic pain. The results indicated that 7 out of the 8 subscales of the MPI-F had satisfactory reliability; the Cronbach's alphas for these subs cales ranged from 0.77 to 0.92. The meaninter-item correlation provides support for the internal consistency of all the 8 subscales. Convergent validity of the 8 subscales of the MPI-F was confirmed, using the correlation of each item with its hypothesised scale. Discriminant validity of the 8 subscales of the MPI-F was shown, using comparisons between the intercorrelations of the 8 subscales of the MPI-F with the reliability coefficients (Cronbach alph) of the 8 subscales. The 8 subscales of the MPI-F were then correlated with pain intensity, depression and mental and physical components of Quality of Life Scale, as measured by the Short Form Health Survey Questionnaire (SF-36). The results of these analyses confirmed the criterion validity of the 5 subscales of the MPI-F. While higher scores on pain intensity, interference, affective distress and negative response from significant others were significantly associated with more severe pain, more depression and poorer quality of life. Higher scores on life control were significantly associated with lower levels of pain, depression and better quality of life. Furthermore, the significant associations between the two MPI-F subscales of pain intensity and affective distress with pain intensity and depression measures provided support for the construct validity of these two MPI-F subscales. The present study did not establish criterion validity for the three subscales of the MPI-F. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the predictive role of family context in the adolescents personal profile including positive adjustment to high school, goal orientation, concern about preparation for the future, and general confidence. A sample consisted of 341 female and male students from the first grade of high schools in Shiraz were selected using random cluster sampling. Subjects answered the Family Context and Personal Profile Scale. The Cronbach's coefficient alpha and test-retest reliability were computed and the obtained coefficients ranged from 0.49 to 0.88. Results showed a significant positive relationship between authoritative context and personal profile, adjustment to high school, goal orientation, concern about preparation for the future, and general confidence. For close families, the results were the same as those of authoritative families. There was no significant relationship between the three other contexts and the dependent variables.Stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that close families context was predictive of personal profile (b=.13), general confidence b=.32), adjustment to high school b=.28), and goal orientation b=.38). Also, authoritative family context could predict personal profile b=.26) and adjustment to high school b=.26). 

This research consisted of 101 female B. A. athlete students and 101 female B.A. non-athlete students in Tarbiat Moallem University (Tehran, Iran). The instruments included Averill Emotional Creativity Inventory, the Endler and Parker Coping Inventory for Stressful Situation and the Goldberg General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Results showed that the mean scores of mental health, emotional creativity, task oriented coping, and avoidances-oriented coping of the female athlete students were significantly difference from the female non-athlete students. However there was no significant difference between the athlete and non-athlete students in their emotional oriented coping. The only predictor variable concerning the mental health in the non-athlete students was the avoidance oriented coping. In the athlete students, although, avoidance-oriented coping was a predictor variable on mental health in the first step but in the second step, the avoidance-oriented coping and emotional-oriented coping were significant predictors of mental health. The emotional creativity of the non-athlete and athlete students was not significant predictor of their mental health.

Cigarette smoking, so current among the youngsters and adolescents, is the greatest enemy of public health. This study aims to determine the smoking pattern of the high school students in Isfahan and its relationship with parenting style of their mothers. 351 students were selected using cross sectional method. Students answered to a questionnaire, in which the smoking pattern (non smoker, occasional smoker, monthly, weekly and daily smoker) and parenting style (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and rejecting) were evaluated. Data were analyzed by SPSS program. Results indicated that 10.3% of the students were currently smoking and 37.9% of them had experienced smoking at least for one time. The age of students had no significant relationship with smoking pattern but the employment status of students and having smoker friends had significant relationships with smoking. Cigarette smoking and having smoker friends in the students who had mothers with authoritative style were significantly lower than the students with rejecting parenting style. Parenting style and having smoker friends were significant predictors for smoking and the students who have authoritative mothers had selected their friends from nonsmokers.