Middle Eastern Journal of Disability Studies

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Tahmasbzadeh M, Mirzaian B, Hasanzadeh R. Comparison of the Efficacy of Cognitive-behavioral Group Therapy and Reality Therapy on Reducing the Symptoms of Social Anxiety in Mothers of Students with Special Learning Disorder. MEJDS 2019; 9 :22-22
URL: http://jdisabilstud.org/article-1-1311-en.html

Background & Objective: Special learning disorder is one of the most popular psychiatric disorders in children. In fifth diagnostic guide and statistical classification of mental disorder, the prevalence of this disorder in educational fields (reading, writing and mathematics) was reported 5–15% in elementary schools in different languages and cultures. The prevalence value in adults is unknown, but it seems that it is approximately 4%. Birth and presence of child with disability in each family can be an undesirable and challenged event, which causes tension, disillusion and disappointment. This situation irrespective of the culture type and society provides the conditions to reduce the psychological health, life quality, life satisfaction and to increase the challenges and problems in the family. Under such a situation, although all members of the family will damage but mothers influence more due to having the traditional role of caregiver, feel more responsibilities towards their children. Particularly, when there is a problem about her child, mother feels more discomfort and this problem affects their mental health and compatibility. As a result, they will face with more psychological problems and pressures. Researches have shown the amount of anxiety–based disorders in mothers of children with learning disability is more than that of mothers of normal children. Regarding the importance of psychological health of mothers and expansion of influential area of social anxiety disorder and its correlations, treatment of the disorder and its associated characteristics will have dual importance. One of the most applied approaches in treatment of anxiety–based disorders is cognitive–behavioral therapy. The essential principle of cognitive–behavioral approaches is that the cognition affects the feeling and behavior. These approaches emphasizes on decreasing the effect of incompatible or inefficient feedbacks or beliefs. On the other hand, specialists believe that reality therapy is a type of therapy, which its application is possible for all people with problems. lack of correction of reality, taking responsibility and accordingly, planning to achieve the goals are the most fundamental requirements of human–being in the life process which have been considered important in this therapeutic approach. Reality therapy is established based on the selection theory. In this theory, it is believed that all actions, which we perform, is behavior and almost all our behaviors are selected. The present study was performed to examine the difference between the efficacy of cognitive–behavioral group therapy and reality therapy on reducing social anxiety in mothers of students with special learning disorder.
Methods: Research method was semi–experimental with pretest and posttest design with control group. In this study 45 mothers of children with special learning disorder were selected as available sampling from learning disorders therapy centers from Babol city (Mazandaran province North of Iran) during 2017–2018 academic year (in the research process due to the test decline, it reduced to 40 persons). They were included randomly and in equal volume in three groups including two experimental groups and one control group. An intervention was performed during 8 sessions in two empirical groups. Connor (2000) social anxiety questionnaire was used before and after teaching. For analysis, covariance test was calculated using SPSS–22 software.
Results: Koalas analyses showed that cognitive–behavioral group therapy (F=8.88, p=0.007) and reality therapy group (F=12.89, p=0.001) significantly affected on reducing social anxiety of mothers of students with special learning disorders. However, Toki's following test showed that there was no significant difference between the efficacy of these two methods.
Conclusion: Regarding the results of this research, it is recommended to therapists who are working with parents of students with special learning disorder to use cognitive–behavioral group therapy and reality therapy to reduce the symptoms of social anxiety of mothers of these students.