Comparison of the Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy on the Components of Family Resilience

https://doi.org/10.61838/ijbmc.v12i4.907
Family resiliency Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy

Authors

  • Mahmoud Fatahi Ph.D. student in Counseling, Family Counseling Department, Sanandaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj, Iran. , Iran, Islamic Republic of
  • Asadollah Vaisi
    vaisi.a1359@gmail.com
    Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Payam Noor University, Tehran, Iran., Iran, Islamic Republic of
  • Omid Moradi Associate Professor, Family Counseling Department, Sanandaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj, Iran. , Iran, Islamic Republic of
Vol. 12 No. 4 (2025): July
Quantitative Study(ies)
January 27, 2025
April 27, 2025

Objective: This study compared the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in addressing the components of family resilience.

Methods and Materials: A quasi-experimental design was used with a control group, pre-test, post-test, and a 5-month follow-up. The statistical population consisted of 407 mothers of intellectually disabled children in Tehran Province, from which 36 participants were selected via simple random sampling. Participants were assigned to three groups: ACT (n=12), MBCT (n=12), and control (n=12). The Family Resilience Scale by Sixbey (2005) was used for data collection, and ANCOVA was employed for data analysis using SPSS software.

Findings: The results of this study showed that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) had a significant positive impact on all six components of family resilience, including family communication and problem-solving, social/economic resources, family bonding, family spirituality, positive outlook, and meaning-making (P<0.01). In contrast, Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) significantly affected four components—family communication and problem-solving, social/economic resources, family bonding, and family spirituality, while its impact on the remaining two components was relatively weak.

Conclusion: The findings highlight the importance of third-wave cognitive-behavioral therapies in addressing psychological challenges in this population. Future studies should explore these interventions across more diverse groups and larger samples.