The Effectiveness of Schema Therapy on Distress Tolerance and Subjective Well-Being in Adolescents with Parental Bereavement Experience
Keywords:
schema therapy, distress tolerance, subjective well-being, adolescents with parental bereavement experienceAbstract
Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the effectiveness of schema therapy in improving distress tolerance and subjective well-being among adolescents who have experienced parental bereavement.
Methods and Materials: This study employed a quasi-experimental design with a pretest–posttest control group. The statistical population consisted of adolescents with parental bereavement experience who referred to counseling centers in Tehran in 2024. Following initial screening using the Grief Experience Questionnaire, 30 adolescents with a moderate level of grief were selected through purposive and convenience sampling and randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 15) and a control group (n = 15). Data were collected using standardized measures of distress tolerance and subjective well-being. The experimental group received schema therapy in 10 group-based sessions of 90 minutes, while the control group received no intervention. Pretest and posttest assessments were conducted for both groups.
Findings: Inferential statistical analysis using multivariate analysis of covariance indicated a significant effect of group membership on both outcome variables after controlling for pretest scores. Schema therapy had a statistically significant effect on distress tolerance, with a large effect size, and a statistically significant effect on subjective well-being, also with a large effect size. The statistical power for both effects was high, indicating strong confidence in the detected differences between the experimental and control groups at the posttest stage.
Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that schema therapy is an effective intervention for enhancing distress tolerance and subjective well-being in adolescents experiencing parental bereavement, suggesting its utility as a comprehensive therapeutic approach for addressing emotional vulnerability and promoting psychological adjustment following loss.
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