The Effectiveness of Compassion-Focused Therapy on Psychological Well-Being and Meaning in Life of Mothers of Children With Intellectual and Developmental Disorders

Objectives This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of compassion-focused therapy on psychological well-being and meaning in the life of mothers of children with intellectual and developmental disorders living in Ahvaz City, Iran. Methods The research method was experimental with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The study participants included 30 mothers who were selected by random sampling method. Fifteen mothers were randomly assigned to the experimental group and 15 to the control group, and the intervention was conducted for the experimental group. The study instruments included psychological wellbeing scale and a meaning in life questionnaire. The obtained data were analyzed by using a multivariate analysis of covariance in SPSS v. 22. Results Multivariate analysis of covariance showed that the study groups differed significantly in at least one of the dependent variables. F statistics of univariate analysis of covariance for psychological well-being (F=48.32, P=0.001) and meaning in life (F=51.32, P=0.001) were obtained in the pretest. In addition, the F statistics of univariate analysis of covariance were obtained for the psychological well-being variable (F=45.61, P=0.001) and meaning in life (F=33.60, P=0.001) in the posttest. Therefore, a significant difference was observed between experimental and control groups in the posttest and follow-up stages in the dependent variables (psychological well-being and meaning in life). Conclusion The results showed that compassion-focused therapy significantly improved the psychological well-being and meaning of mothers of children with intellectual and developmental disorders. A follow-up of four weeks also indicated the sustainability of the therapeutic improvements. Consequently, this treatment is recommended to psychotherapists as a valuable intervention for increasing psychological well-being and meaning in life.