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Comparison of the effectiveness of positive psychotherapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction on negative automatic thoughts and test anxiety in entrance exam students with psychosomatic symptoms
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Nikoo Ebadiyan   , Saeed Moshtaghi * |
| Department of Psychology, Dezful Branch, Islamic Azad University,Dezful, Iran , saeed1788@gmail.com |
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Abstract: (179 Views) |
Introduction: Due to academic pressures and social expectations, college entrance exam students often face various psychological problems that can affect their academic performance and quality of life. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of positive psychotherapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction program on reducing negative automatic thoughts and test anxiety in entrance exam students with psychosomatic symptoms.
Methods: The research method was a quasi-experimental design with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group and a three-month follow-up period. The statistical population of the study consisted of all female entrance examination students under the supervision and follow-up of educational counselors in the period of 2024-2025 of Dezful City counseling centers. 45 eligible individuals were selected based on inclusion and exclusion criteria and through purposive sampling and were randomly assigned to two experimental groups and a control group. The data collection tools were the Negative Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire (Holon et al., 1980) and Test Anxiety Questionnaire (Fridman-Jackob, 1997). Both experimental and control groups were pre-tested using the research tools. Then, positive psychotherapy intervention (Rashid and Seligman, 2013) for 8 sessions and mindfulness-based stress reduction (Kabat-Zinn, 2009) for 8 sessions were implemented for their respective experimental groups, but the control group was placed on a waiting list. At the end of the interventions, both experimental and control groups were post-tested using the research instrument. Three months later, a follow-up test was administered to both experimental and control groups. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software version 28 using repeated measures analysis of variance and Bonferroni post hoc test.
Results: The results showed that positive psychotherapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction program were effective in negative automatic thoughts and test anxiety (p<0.05). There was no significant difference between the effectiveness of positive psychotherapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction program in negative automatic thoughts and test anxiety (p<0.05).
Conclusions: According to the findings, it can be concluded that positive psychotherapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction have had a positive effect on reducing negative automatic thoughts and test anxiety in entrance exam students with psychosomatic symptoms. Therefore, specialists, researchers, and therapists in this field can use these interventions as effective options in these individuals.
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| Keywords: Positive psychotherapy, Mindfulness, Negative automatic thoughts, Test anxiety, Psychosomatic symptoms, Entrance exam. |
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Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
Special
Received: 2025/05/29 | Accepted: 2025/08/1 | Published: 2025/08/1 | ePublished: 2025/08/1
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