Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1
MA. in clinical psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
2
Assistant professor of psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
3
Ph.D. student of psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
4
Ph.D. student of psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
5
Professor of psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
6
M.Sc. in clinical psychology, Tehran Institute of Psychiatry- School of Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Introduction: Emotion-Focused Therapy is a short-term intervention which can target a constellation of disturbances characterized as complex PTSD stemming from sexual abuse. The aim of this study was to study the effectiveness of emotion-focused therapy for sexual victims of romantic relationships.
Materials and Methods: The clinical trial study was done by a single case method and a multiple baseline design. Three subjects (three women) were selected through purposive sampling. Emotion-focused therapy was conducted in 12 weekly sessions during years 2011-12 at the University Counseling Center and follow-up sessions were held three months after the treatment. Subjects completed Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Scale, Rosenberg Self-esteem, Beck Depression Inventory-II, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and Rumination questionnaires before treatment (at baseline), during sessions, and at three month follow-up. They also completed Post-traumatic Stress and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) pre-treatment, before entry into the study. Clinical significance and recovery percentage were used for data analysis.
Results: The results of study showed that emotion-focused therapy led to a significant improvement in PTSD, depression, anxiety, and rumination symptoms and increasing self-esteem in participants. Moreover, these results were maintained in a three-month follow-up in all the targets.
Conclusion: It seems that emotion-focused therapy is effective in modulating clinical symptoms in sexual victims of romantic relationships and improves their self-esteem.
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