M. Zemestani; I. Davoudi; M. Mehrabizadeh Honarmand; Y. Zargar
Volume 20, Issue 1 , June 2013, , Pages 183-212
Abstract
The aim of this study was to examine the effects of brief group behavioral activation (BA) and metacognitive therapy (MCT) on depression, anxiety, and cognitive emotional regulation strategies (including self-blame, acceptance, rumination, positive reappraisal and catastrophizing) in University students. ...
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The aim of this study was to examine the effects of brief group behavioral activation (BA) and metacognitive therapy (MCT) on depression, anxiety, and cognitive emotional regulation strategies (including self-blame, acceptance, rumination, positive reappraisal and catastrophizing) in University students. In a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design, with a control group, 41 bachelor students of Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, after primary clinical assessment and acquisition of study criteria, were randomly assigned to either BA (n = 13), MCT (n = 14), or a waiting-list control group (n= 14). The treatment groups received treatments in 8 sessions. The Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire were used for measuring variables, before and after the intervention, and 2-month follow up. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance. Post hoc pair-wise comparisons showed that both treatments were equally effective for depressive and anxiety symptoms. However, therapeutic techniques differed with regard to their effects on specific facets of emotion regulation, such as Positive Reappraisal and Catastrophizing, with MCT being more effective in modifying this strategies, compared to BA. Therapeutic gains were maintained to some extent over 2-month follow up, except for Acceptance variable, indicating that MCT᾽S therapeutic effects, on this strategy were maintained, comparing to BA. Given the efficacy of both treatments on depression and anxiety symptoms and cognitive emotion regulation strategies, brief BA and MCT could be an alternative for the clients that seek an effective and economic treatments in university counseling centers.
