Middle Eastern Journal of Disability Studies

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Background and purpose: Any disorder in which the individual's academic achievement with respect to age and education and intelligence is much less based on reading and writing tests and calculating what is expected is much less than learning disorder ^[1] or is described. The term "learning disorder" refers to the need to recognize and serve students who are incessantly failing in their classroom work, and at the same time do not entertain exceptional children within the age of the child . Physical appearance, their height and weight are indicative of their normality. Their intelligence is routinely normal, well talked, like other children play, and they interact with others as well as their peers. They also have the necessary help at home, and they do well with what parents give them. However, they do not have the ability to convey information to express and, in particular, writing. So according to the general characteristics of these students, they can be put into a new group called Student Disorders, and they said that these students are impaired in one or more psychological processes that are perceived through oral or written language. This disorder can appear as a complete inability to listen, speak, read, write, spell , or perform mathematical calculations. This term covers conditions such as cognitive impairments, brain damage, partial defects in brain work, and readings . This definition does not include those students who have experienced learning difficulties due to visual, auditory, or motor disabilities, mental retardation, or environmental, cultural or economic deprivation. Learning disabilities are not synonymous with terms such as compensatory reading or latency. This definition specifically refers to children and adolescents who are severely impacted by specific learning disabilities. Students with this problem need special training that, according to Oz, should deal with special, unusual, and unusual exercises, this is distinct from the educational and regular practices that most children use. The task of the experts in this field is to compensate for the learning disability, especially the child, as individual training or small groups. Executive functions are the forces that are born in the child and as the child grows, this force also grows, and at the age of 12, the performance of the child's performance functions as adults. Functional function has many functions and roles that affect all people of all ages and gender, in terms of age, function, and functional health. In fact, this force, as a cognitive structure, is responsible for tasks such as problem solving, attention, reasoning, organizing, planning, memory, inhibitory control, impulse control, retention, alteration, and inhibition of response; consequently, the defect and Disruptions in this area disrupt daily functioning. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of executive functions in reading performance of children with special learning disorder, dyslexia.
Materials and Methods: The present study was a descriptive correlational study. The statistical population of this study was all students with special disordered reading disorder, of which 95 students were selected by cluster sampling method. They were selected by reading performance test (Karami-Nouri, 2005) and functional questionnaire Brieff's executive was made. NEMA tes was done by Korami Noori and Moradi (2005) in order to measure reading performance as well as dyslexic diagnosis and was performed on 1614 (770 male and 844 female students) in five educational levels in Tehran, Sanandaj and Tabriz. Is. After collecting data and performing statistical operations for each base in each city, raw scores and norms scores were calculated. Cronbach's alpha coefficient reading and reading dyslexia were 0.81. This test consists of ten subscales that compute the total score of the subject in reading performance from the total subscales. The Behavioral Ratings Questionnaire (BREF) was handled by Gioia, Sparket, Orb, and Controller in 2000. The questionnaire has a form of volunteers and teachers, and evaluates eight sub-scales, which include inhibition, shifting attention, Emotion Control, Initiation, Working Memory, Strategic Planning, Organizing and Supervising. The questionnaire is one of the reliable and reliable tests that evaluates executive functions. Among other executive function questionnaires, it is worthwhile to evaluate the behavior of individuals in real life of individuals. The data were analyzed using regression analysis method and analyzed by SPSS21 software.
Results: The results of this study showed that executive functions have the ability to predict reading performance in children with dysfunctional learning disorder (p <0.05).
Conclusion: Considering the findings of this research and the importance of the role of executive functions in the reading performance of students with special learning disabilities, the type of dyslexia is the use of cognitive rehabilitation programs to improve the performance of these students to experts in this area.

 

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Background & Objective: Delinquency has been considered not only as a legal issue but also as a sociological and psychological phenomenon. Delinquent behavior refers to a set of behaviors that violate rules and norms and harm society and others. Meanwhile, psychologists emphasize the role of individual and environmental factors in the emergence of attitudes toward crime.  Family factors as an environmental factor and psychological well-being as an individual factor are important. Psychological well being refers to a person’s cognitive and affective evaluations of his or her life. Ryff (1989) proposed the concept of psychological well-being as a multidimensional construct. Many researches showed the relationships between family factor and Psychological Well-Being concept. Also, some studies showed that family factors and Psychological Well-Being affected to adolescence delinquency. But no research has investigated the relationship between family function, psychological well-being and attitude to delinquency in a causal model. So, the purpose of this study was to investigate the mediating role of psychological well-being  as a index of mental health in the relationship between family processes and functions and attitudes toward delinquency in Tehran's Rehabilitation and Development Center.
Methods: The research method was descriptive correlation. The statistical population included adolescent boys in the Tehran's Rehabilitation and Development Center. The sample consisted of 118 adolescents who were selected by random sampling. Measurement tools were Family Process Scale (Samani, 2008), Psychological Well-Being Scale (Reef, 1989) and Attitude to Delinquent Behavior Questionnaire (Fazli, 2010). Family Process Scale have five sub scales: decision making and problem solving skills, communication skills, coping skills, consistency and religious orientation. Psychological Well-Being Scale, also, have six sub scales: positive attitude toward oneself, satisfying relationships with others, independence and self-determination, sense of mastery and competence, sense of goal directedness in life and feeling of personal continued development. . In this study, to determine the validity, the correlation coefficient between the sub-scales and total sores was used for each scale and the Cronbach's alpha method was used to verify the reliability. The validity and reliability of the all tools used in the research were desirable and satisfactory. Data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistical methods. At the descriptive level, the mean and standard deviation and the inferential level of Pearson correlation coefficient and structural equation modeling using AMOS-23 software were used.
Results: The results of structural equation modeling showed that among the dimensions of family process, two dimensions of decision making and problem solving (p = 0.001, β = 0.34) and religious orientation (p = 0.001, β = 0.18) direct effect And had a meaningful psychological well-being. Also, problem-solving and decision-making processes (p = 0.001, β = 16/0), coping skills (p = 0.003, β = 0.41), communication skills (p = 0.001, β=0.19) and psychological well-being (p = 0.001, β=-0.15) were significant predictors of attitude towards delinquency. The results of the bootstrap test indicated that problem-solving and decision-making processes (p = 0.03, β = 0.03) and religious orientation (p = 0.01, β = 0.19) were predicted by psychological well-being There was a significant difference between attitudes towards delinquency. The fitting indices of the model also showed that this model had a good fit.
Conclusion: Overall, the results of this study showed that psychological well-being can play a mediator role between family processes (decision making and problem solving and religious beliefs) and attitudes toward juvenile delinquency. In families where members feel responsible for each other, they are in agreement on decisions, do not lose control over stressful issues, participate in important decisions of life, and rational ways to solve life problems. They increase the sense of efficiency of the members and evaluate the children of the family as a source of mental and emotional support, and this will improve the mental health of the members. Finally, strong family relationships, parental supervision and their religious approach can reduce the chance of negative and destructive relationships among adolescents by influencing mental health indicators.
 

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Introduction: Considering the fact that motion is the basis of cognition and the processes of the mind such as executive functions, the present study aims to determine the effectiveness of perceptual-motor skills on the executive functions (cognitive flexibility, problem solving, working memory and response inhibition) of students with Mental math was performed.
Materials and Methods: This is a quasi-experimental research with pretest posttest design. The statistical population consisted of all third and fourth grade students in elementary school in Mashhad, Iran during the academic year of 2018-2019. In order to conduct this research, 20 girls with math disorders were selected by available sampling method and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups (10 children in the experimental group and 10 children in the control group). The test used was the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (quoted by Qavami, 2001). Interventions based on perceptual-motor skills were performed for 12 sessions on the experimental group. Data were analyzed using covariance analysis.
Results: The results of this study showed that interventions in cognitive-motor skills are effective on executive functions (cognitive flexibility and problem solving) of students with math disorders (p> 0.05).
Conclusion: The results showed that cognitive-motor skills increase the performance of cognitive flexibility and problem solving which leads to learning and academic achievement of students, especially students with math disorders. It is recommended that the diagnosis and intervention in perceptual-motor skills be done Immediately.

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Aim: Cognitive performance is the process of thinking that leads to understanding of thoughts and ideas. One of the factors affecting the cognitive performance of individuals, especially those of children, is color. There are some reasons why the effects of color on cognitive performance and subsequent academic achievement of students should be studied further: First of all, this makes it possible to assess more accurately how reproduction and generalization of the effect of color on performance can be achieved; secondly, as with many psychological effects, the study of the phenomenon professionally allows a better understanding of the mechanisms of color; and thirdly, theories on color effects and behaviors indicate that the role of the effects of the field is important. More research is required to be done on the effects of color in areas such as classroom and educational background. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of color stimuli on cognitive performance (motor skills, problem solving, and creativity) of students in Birjand City.
Methods: The present study is a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design with control and experimental groups. The statistical population consisted of all female students of the 3^rd grade elementary school of Birjand City, comprising 2500 students in the academic year of 2018-2019. 44 participants in each group (22 ones in the intervention group and 22 ones in the control group) were selected via the convenience sampling method. In order to control the intervening variables, the researchers tried to homogenize the selected participants in terms of demographic characteristics such as age, socioeconomic status, having parents (father-mother), lack of physical-motor disability, and lack of psychological disorders. The inclusion criteria consisted of: being female 3^rd grade elementary school students, tendency to participate in the experiment, being at ages ranging from 8 to 10 years, and having mental health according to DSM5 criteria. Exclusion criteria were criteria include lack of interest during the trial, and being absent for more than two sessions. The number of members in each group was 22. The instrument used in the research are based on those employed in Anna Franklin (2016), which are: motor skills test (this sub-test consists of two questions and each question answers 5 points), the problem-solving skill test (this subscale consists of two questions and each question receives 5 points) and the creativity test (this subscale consists of two questions and each question receives 5 points). Some of the instruments have changed due to the difference in curricula in Iran, including numerical calculation as well as understanding and interpretation. According to the researcher-made cognitive performance based on Franklin's instruments, content validity index (CVI) was employed to determine validity of the designed instrument. Also, for determination of its reliability, the test-retest method was used. Data were analyzed by MANCOVA.
Results: The research findings indicate that there is a significant correlation of the components of cognitive performance, namely, problem solving skills, creativity, and motor skills with color stimuli. Color stimuli have a positive effect on students' creativity. The value of variable of creativity in students influenced by yellow is significantly less than that of students influenced by blue, pale blue, and green. Also shown is that there is a significant difference between the mean scores of creativity variable in the red group and the pale blue, blue, green groups, which means that creativity of students influenced by red is less than those affected by pale blue, blue, and green. Also, the results show that in all experimental groups under the influence of different colors, creativity is more than that of students in the control group or under the influence of white.
Conclusion: Color stimuli have a positive effect on students' creativity, problem solving, and motor skills.

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Background and Aim: Autism spectrum disorder is a wide range of developmental disabilities diagnosed by socio-communication disorders,and repetitive behavioral patterns. Autism is a multifaceted disorder with complex symptoms that can be early detected. Although multiple illnesses are commonly reported among people with autism, people in this spectrum vary greatly in the presentation of symptoms and the level of the disorder. These symptoms can be detected from the age of 18 to 24 months through accurate assessments. Children with autism experience many emotional and behavioral problems including anxiety, depression, lawlessness, aggression, self-harm, inattention, hyperactivity, irritability and abnormal thinking. It is believed that there is a deficit of executive function in children with autism. Executive functions are a general term that refers to mental control processes related to their physical, cognitive, and emotional control and are necessary to maintain effective goal-direct behaviors. Therefore, Cognitive rehabilitation is one of the new methods that can be used to improve the performance children with autism spectrum disorder. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation of attention and memory on behavioral problems and executive functions in children with autism spectrum disorder.
 
Methods: This quasi-experimental study was performed in a pretest-posttest experiment design with a control group. The statistical population consisted of all students with autism spectrum disorder in Shiraz during 2020. 44 students were selected by available sampling method and randomly assigned into experimental (n=22) and control groups (n=22). Research instruments included Autism Scope Questionnaire (ASSQ) (Ehler et al,1993), stroop test(Ridley,1953), continuous performance test (Rosvold,1956), Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (Grant et al,1948) and N-Back test(Kirchner,1958). The intervention was performed on the experimental group based on cognitive rehabilitation of attention and memory during 13 sessions (60 minutes) for 3 months, 3 sessions per week and 1 hour per session during 3 months. A one-way covariance test was used to analyze the data by SPSS version 24.
Results: The findings showed a significant improvement in behavioral problems (p<0/001) and components of executive functions such as planning (p<0.001), inhibition (p<0.001), sustained attention (p <0.001) and working memory (p<0.001) in the experimental group comparing to the pre-test scores.
Conclusion: In general, the findings of this study indicate that the cognitive rehabilitation of attention and memory intervention is effective on behavioral problems and components of executive functions such as planning, inhibition, sustained attention and working memory of autism children. If the social and personal problems in autism spectrum disorder persist, it will lead to trauma and psychological stress, and eventually the collapse of their individual and family systems.

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Background and purpose: The mental health of people in any society is one of the necessities of that society, and one of the important indicators of mental health is the level of depression and life satisfaction. These mental health indicators are becoming increasingly important especially in the youth period. Therefore, the present research was conducted with the aim of investigating the mediating role of pleasurable experiences in the relationship between family functioning and depression and life satisfaction of young people.
Research method: The descriptive research method was a correlation type, which was carried out using the path analysis method. The statistical population included all young people aged 18 to 25 in Shiraz. 300 people were selected using available sampling method. The measurement tools included the family functioning scale (Garnefsky, Craig and Spinhaven, 2001), the pleasurable experiences scale (Connor and Davidson, 2003), the life satisfaction questionnaire (Foures and Olson, 1993) and the depression scale (Bashart, 2010). The collected data were analyzed at two descriptive levels (using mean, standard deviation and correlation coefficient) and inferential (using structural equation modeling method with Amos-21 software). The significance level for all statistical tests was α=0.05.
Results: The results showed that family functions have a direct and significant effect on enjoyable experiences (β = 0.42, P < 0.0001) and life satisfaction (β = 0.37, P < 0.0001). In addition, the results indicated that pleasant experiences (β = 0.33, P < 0.0001) had a direct and significant effect on life satisfaction and depression. In addition, the results indicated that the variable of pleasurable experiences played a mediating role in the relationship between family functioning and depression and life satisfaction of young people.
Conclusion: Based on the findings of the research, it can be concluded that pleasurable experiences play a mediating role in the relationship between family functioning and depression and life satisfaction of young people.
 

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 Background and purpose: One of the ways that is effective in improving neurological problems and individual and interpersonal communication caused by emotional and environmental deprivation of children living in quasi-families is to strengthen executive function. This study was conducted with the aim of neurocognitive music therapy intervention and its effectiveness on the executive functions of children in Tehran.
 Research method: This study was of an experimental type, in which 32 students aged 7 to 12 years old from two care centers for orphaned girls and boys in Tehran city were selected by available sampling method and by random replacement method, an equal number of them were divided into experimental and control groups. They   got. The intervention of music therapy based on the musical training of Michael Thaut(2005) executive function  was designed in collaboration with a music expert and after calculating the internal validity of the program, 20 sessions of the music program were held in the form of two sessions of 45 minutes per week for 3 months in the child care center for the experimental group. To evaluate executive function, computerized Wisconsin card(Berg and et all, 1984) sorting test was used. Data analysis was done using the analysis of variance test with repeated measurements through SPSS software version 25 and at a significance level of 0.05.
 Results: Analysis of variance with repeated measurement showed that the intervention of music therapy of neuroscience caused a significant change in the number of correct answers (p<0.001) of children in the experimental group. Also, this intervention led to a significant trend in the number of errors in children's survival (p=0.002).
 Conclusion: The findings showed that the neurological music intervention had a significant effect on the executive function. This intervention can be used effectively in care centers for bad and orphaned children.
 

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Abstract
Introduction and purpose: Falling is one of the most common geriatric syndromes that threatens the independence of the elderly. One of the most effective fall prevention strategies is exercises to strengthen muscles along with balance training. The main aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of electrical muscle stimulation on improving dynamic balance and fear of falling in the elderly. Methodology: The present study was of semi-experimental type and the research design included pre-test and post-test with two training and control groups. The statistical population of this research was elderly women in the age range of 65 to 70 years in Mashhad city. From this community, 20 elderly women were selected voluntarily and according to the objectives of the study from among the elderly women of Mashhad city. After selection, people were randomly divided into two groups of electrical muscle stimulation exercises and the control group. In order to collect data, the international fall efficiency questionnaire and dynamic balance tests (timed rise and walk test and Fullerton test) were used in two phases, pre-test and post-test. Electrical stimulation exercises were performed for 8 weeks and two 20-minute sessions per week. This training course was conducted in three training phases including: adaptation stages (2 weeks), initial training (2 weeks) and main training (4 weeks). The control group did not receive any intervention during this period. After completing the training period, both groups participated in the post-test as in the pre-test. Multivariate Analysis of Covariance (MANCOVA) was used to investigate intra-group and inter-group changes at a significance level of less than 500 using Spss version 24 software. Results: The findings showed; Electrical muscle stimulation exercises have a significant effect on improving the dynamic balance (fullerene test) of the elderly (p < 0.05). Also, the findings showed that electrical muscle stimulation exercises have no significant effect on the elderly's fear of falling (p < 0.05). Conclusion: According to the present findings, trainers and counselors can use electrical muscle stimulation as a healthy and safe method in order to improve the balance and movement independence of elderly women.

 

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Background and purpose: Computer games, like many new forms of entertainment that have gained widespread popularity, have caused concerns about their possible effects on extreme players. Addiction and dependence on computer games is one of the most important psychological and behavioral effects of using these games. The purpose of the present study was to compare the executive functions and social skills in teenagers addicted to online computer games and non-addicted teenagers.
Method: The type of the current research was of causal-comparative type. The statistical population of this research was all tenth grade students in Yazd city in the academic year 1401-1402. The sample consisted of 200 of these students who were randomly selected in a cluster. In this way, one district was randomly selected from among the educational districts of Yazd city, and then 4 high schools were randomly selected from among the boys' high schools in this district, and the questionnaires were distributed in these schools, and finally 200 students, including 100 students with Symptoms of computer game addiction and 100 independent students were selected based on the scores of the computer game addiction questionnaire (Chang and Wang, 2002). The cut-off point for selecting students addicted to computer games was 53 and above based on the score of the questionnaire. Then social skills questionnaires (Matson, 1983) and the Wisconsin card sorting test were administered. Then the data were analyzed by independent t-test using spss21 software at a significance level of 0.05.
Findings: The number of participants in this research was 200 people, 100 of them were addicted to online computer games and 100 people were not addicted to online computer games. 21 respondents to the questionnaire were engaged in computer games for less than 6 months, 69 between 6 months and 1 year, 70 between 1 and 2 years, and 40 for more than 2 years.The results of the independent t-test showed that there is a significant difference between all the subscales of the Wisconsin card sorting test, namely the number of classes, the perseveration error and the total error in students who are addicted to online games and non-addicted students (p<0.001). In other words, the executive functions of students who are not addicted to internet games are better than those who are addicted. Also, the results of the independent t-test showed that there is a significant difference between the social skills component in the two groups dependent on online games and the non-dependent group. In other words, teenagers who are not addicted to internet games have better social skills than teenagers who are addicted to games
Conclusion: This research showed that teenagers who are not addicted to computer games have better performance than non-addicted teenagers in executive functions and social skills. Experts in this field are advised to pay attention to these matters.
Keywords: executive functions, social skills, addiction to computer games
 

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Background and purpose: One of the most well-known disorders associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is developmental dyslexia. Developmental dyslexia is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by slow and/or inaccurate word recognition and poor spelling in children or adults with adequate intelligence, appropriate instruction, and intact sensory abilities.The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the effectiveness of phonological awareness along with music rhythm on executive functions in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder with developmental dyslexia.
method: The current research method was semi-experimental with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The statistical population included all children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and developmental dyslexia in Yazd city in 2023, 30 of whom were randomly selected as the sample group by available sampling and divided into experimental (15 children) and control groups (15 children). The research tool was Barkley's Executive Function Questionnaire (2012). Data analysis was done using multivariate and univariate analysis of covariance in SPSS-26 software. A significant level was also considered (p=0.05).
Findings: The results of covariance analysis for each variable of time self-management (p=0.022), self-organization and problem solving (p=0.010), self-control/inhibition (p=0.017), self-motivation (p=0.016) =), emotional self-regulation (p=0.014) and total executive functions (p=0.008) showed effectiveness in the post-test phase of the experimental group compared to the control group, so that according to the eta square, the average increase of self-management variables Time, self-organization and problem solving, self-control, self-motivation, self-regulation of emotions and total executive functions were respectively equal to 0.878, 0.974, 0.929, 0.937, 0.949 and 0.951. It showed the effect of the experimental intervention (phonological awareness with music rhythm). The most effective was on the component of self-organization and problem solving with 0.97. (p ≥ 0.005).
Conclusion: The general conclusion showed that phonological awareness along with music rhythm training is effective in improving the executive functions of children with hyperactive attention disorder and developmental dyslexia. Music rhythm training can increase the the ability of self organization and problem solving in these children. that means when chideren with hyperactive attention disorder and developmental dyslexia experince better executive functions, the ability of learingin of phonological awarness also increase. So phonological awarneness with music rhythm training can be used as a new methode by psychologist in special schools for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder with developmental dyslexia.

 

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Objective: Spasticity and contracture in the flexor muscles of the wrist may occur after stroke, especially in which early recovery did not appear. Splints are prescribed to reduce spasticity and to prevent contracture after stroke. Although there is a few research in this field. The aim of our study is to examine the impact of the Extension splint on function of upper extremity in chronic stroke patients.

Material & Methods: Fourteen patients with chronic cerebrovascular accident participated in the study according to inclusion criteria, and after initial assessments they were given splints. Goniometry was the method of assessing range of motion, and Fugl-Meyer assessment was used to examine the function of upper extremity, and spasticity of upper limb was evaluated by Modified Ashworth Scale. Patients were instructed to wear the extension splints for 1 month and 2 hours a day and all night (6 to 8 hours). Assessments were repeated at the end of the first, third and fourth weeks.

Results: The difference of wrist`s spasticity level and passive range of motion of wrist were significant before and after 1 month (P<0.001, P=0.01). And other items did not significantly improve (P>0.05). Also a result indicates that there are improvements in all outcomes to some extent and these results were not significantly different in the outcomes.

Conclusion: The results show that 1-month using of this splint with 30-degrees of wrist extension reduces spasticity and improves passive wrist range of motion. But changes in other outcomes were not significant.

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Objectives: Impairment of gross motor function is the main problem in children with cerebral palsy which lowers quality of life. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of devoting more time to NDT (intensive Neuro‒developmental therapy) sessions on gross motor function (GMF) and quality of life (QOL) in children with cerebral palsy. 
Methods: In this quasi‒experimental‒interventional study 36 children with cerebral palsy aged 4‒8 years were selected through convenient sampling. They were then randomly & equally divided into two groups of control and intervention. Both groups received conventional occupational therapy 3 times per week, for 3 months. In the intervention group however, half of each therapy session was devoted to NDT. All subjects were evaluated by the GMFM, GMFCS and CP‒QOL scales before and after treatment. All data were analyzed by SPSS 16. 
Results: A significant increase in GMFM was observed in the intervention group (p=0.037) However, changes in QOL were not statistically significant between the two groups. 
Conclusions: Devoting more time to NDT led to an improvement in GMFM in children with cerebral palsy. However, the intervention had no effect on the domains of QOL.

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Objective: Those people with schizophrenia have problems in interpersonal and social skills associated with social dysfunction. Facial recognition ability is an effective component of social functioning. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the facial emotion recognition and social functioning in the male schizophrenia patients and comparing them with the normal matched group.

Methods: The method of this study was analytical- descriptive and comparative investigations. 20 healthy controls and 20 schizophrenia patients who were matched in age, sex and educational level, were assessed in terms of the ability to match and naming facial emotion by a researcher-made test, and the interaction skills by the “Assessment of Communication and Interaction Skills” (ACIS) questionnaire. The sampling was performed from those patients who inhabited in Tolou rehabilitation center and supported houses in Tehran as census method and sampling of the healthy control group was performed as available method.

Results: There were significant differences in scores of communication and interaction skills (p=0.050), anger faces naming (p=0.021), the number and reaction time of pictures with different emotion (p=0.003) and (p=0.001), respectively, and also reaction time of pictures with same emotion (p=0.050) between 2 groups. The relations between the “happy faces naming” with “communication and interaction skills” in the patient group (p=0.050), “the number of pictures with different emotion” with “information exchange” in the control group (p=0.047) and “reaction time of pictures with different emotion” with “information exchange” in the patient group showed significant differences (p=0. 018).

Conclusion: Given that only in a few cases, the recognition of emotional faces in schizophrenia patients was associated with the communication and interaction skills, therefore, there need the deeper and wider studies.

Keywords: .

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Objective: Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in communication and social interactions, as well as patterns of repetitive or restrictive behaviors and interests. Challenging behavior occurs at very high rates among individuals with Autism and is broadly defined as behavior that jeopardizes an individual or excludes them from community involvement. Common challenging behaviors that occur across the lifespan include self-stimulation and stereotypy, self-injury, noncompliance, physical aggression, and other destructive or disruptive behaviors. Challenging behaviors impede learning, social and adaptive skill acquisition, and may lead to extended hospital admissions or the use of physical or chemical restraints. A number of studies provide evidence for the use of behavioral and psychosocial interventions as a first line treatment for the core symptoms of Autism in children. This study examined the impact of psycho-social intervention on challenging behavior in children with high- functioning autism spectrum disorder.

Methods: According to the objective of the study, a two-group experimental design with pretest-posttest was administered. The statistical population of research included 24 children with autistic spectrum disorder, aged 8-12 years old who were divided into two groups. First, the ASD was used to study the symptoms of autistic disorder in children and to determine the severity and number of autistic traits. Then, GARS check list was applied to evaluate the challenging behavior. Only the experimental group participated in the psycho-social intervention group training. The group training ran for both parents and children in 10 sessions each lasting for 60 minutes. Later on, the post-test was administered for both groups.

Group training objective summary: During these ten sessions, parents learned how to behave and control the challenging behavior in their children. First; they become familiar with ASD syndrome and types of challenging behavior in their children. As the sessions continued parents learned how to recode their children behaviors at home. During the sessions it was emphasized that parents need to control stress in their children behaviors. In psycho-social program, parents play an active role in controlling and training their children's behaviors.

In 10 sessions held for the children, at first we recorded their challenging behaviors, then with games predetermined, they became aware of their challenging behaviors. We used behavior techniques such as Reinforcement and punishment in correct potions. In the following stages, children learned how to regulate their emotion in relation to the environment.

Results: The results showed that, the mean score for challenging behavior in experimental group was 34.58 (SD= 4.31) in pretest and was 24.50 (SD= 1.93) in posttest. Moreover, the mean score for social interaction in experimental group in pretest was 37.67 (SD= 4.33) and was 34.08 (SD= 4.12) in posttest. ANCOVA was used to compare the pretest and posttest results. A significant difference was observed between the two groups of this study in challenging behavior (f=21.04, P≤0.0001) and social interaction (f=5.08, P≤0.037).

Conclusion: Psycho-social intervention included both training sessions with parents and with their children. We used behavioral technique in training sessions with children. Previous reviews have supported the use of behavioral intervention for the reduction of challenging behaviors including self-injury, stereotype, and aggression. On the other hand, training self-management to children with autism spectrum disorder has a positive effect in reducing challenging behavior. Redirecting behavior involves the prompting of an alternative appropriate response contingent on occurrence of the target behavior. In our research we use the mechanism of redirecting behavior to reduce challenging behavior. Thus, we can conclude that in an intervention program that both parents and their children participate, following the taught techniques is useful to decrease challenging behavior.

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Abstract
Background & Objective: The phenomenon of running away from home creates public disorder and confusion in society and it is the most common cause of delinquent behavior. Dysfunctional thought is one of the important factors contributing to the appearance of underlying disorders; including assumptions and beliefs that are generally negative. Mindfulness skills are taught as a means to note distressing thoughts and feelings, hold such experiences in awareness, and cultivate acceptance and self-compassion so as to break up associative networks and offset the risk of running away. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on controlling the dysfunctional thoughts in runaway girls and those mismanaged by bad parents in the city of Rasht. 
Methods: The research used a quasi-experimental method with a pretest-posttest design. The statistical population consisted of all runaway girls and bad parent girls that are kept in centers affiliated to State Welfare Organization of Guilan; a total of 12 people, including 6 cases of runaway girls and 6 bad parent girls were selected through non-random convenience sampling and were put in two groups of runaway girls and bad parent girls. After pretest using dysfunctional thoughts and self-concept questionnaires, in both groups 8 sessions of 90 minutes of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy were performed. After the end of the training and treatment period and the implementation of posttest, one-way analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) and dependent two-sample t test were used for both groups. 
Results: Dependent two-sample t-test results showed that the average of dysfunctional thoughts in runaway girls and bad parent girls in posttest is significantly lower than the pretest. It could be said that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy has a positive effect on controlling dysfunctional attitude in runaway girls and bad parent girls (p<0.05). 
Conclusion: The results of analysis of covariance showed that regarding the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy to control dysfunctional thoughts, there is no difference in runaway girls and bad parent girls; but in the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on self-concept, there is a difference in runaway girls and bad parent girls and this method has more effect on increasing self-concept in runaway girls than bad parent girls (p<0.05).