The Effectiveness of Forgiveness Therapy on The Mental Health and Marital Intimacy of Couples Seeking Divorce

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Associate professor of psychology, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran

2 Master of psychology, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran

3 Assistant professor of psychology, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of forgiveness therapy on the mental health and marital intimacy of couples seeking divorce in Tehran.
Methods: The quasi experimental design was pretest-posttest with a control group. The study's statistical population included all divorce applicants in districts 2 and 5 of Tehran who had been referred to counseling centers for counseling services. By convenience sampling, thirty people were selected from the above population and randomly assigned into two experimental (n=15) and control (n=15) groups. The research instruments were Goldberg Mental Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and Thompson & Walker Marital Intimacy Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using the covariance test.
Results: Based on the results of the research on the effectiveness of forgiveness therapy on the mental health, the difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of the amount of mental health in the post-test was confirmed. The research on the effectiveness of forgiveness therapy on marital intimacy was investigated, and the difference between experimental and control groups was confirmed in terms of marital intimacy in the post-test.
Conclusion: According to the results of this study, it can be said that forgiveness therapy increased mental health and marital intimacy in people under education. Therefore, family counselors and those involved in marital counseling should use the therapeutic forgiveness training protocol to promote mental health and marital intimacy for couples seeking divorce.

Keywords

References

Afifi, T. D., Davis, S., Merrill, A. F., Coveleski, S., Denes, A., & Shahnazi, A. F. (2018). Couples’ communication about financial uncertainty following the great recession and its association with stress, mental health and divorce proneness. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 39, 205-219. Doi:10.1111/hcre.12048.
Agu, S. A., & Nwankwo, B. E. (2019). Influence of religious commitment, intentionality in marriage and forgiveness on marital satisfaction among married couples. IFE Psychologia: An International Journal, 27(2), 121-133.‏ https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC-19190fbde4
Akhtar, S., & Barlow, J. (2018). Forgiveness therapy for the promotion of mental well-being: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 19(1), 107-122.‏ Doi:10.1177/1524838016637079
Amato, P. R. (2010). Research on divorce: Continuing trends and new developments. Journal of Marriage and Family, 72(3), 650-666. Doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00723.x
Avanti, F. T., & Setiawan, J. L. (2022). THE ROLE OF TRUST AND FORGIVENESS IN MARITAL INTIMACY ON HUSBANDS OR WIVES OF DUAL-EARNER COUPLES IN SURABAYA. Jurnal Ilmu Keluarga & Konsumen, 15(2), 117-126.‏ Doi:10.24156/jikk.2022.15.2.117
Bagherizadeh Moghaddam, F., Khayatan, F., & Yosefi, Z. (2021). Compilation of forgiveness-oriented schema therapy package and its comparison with schema therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy and its effect on commitment, intimacy of women with marital conflicts referred to counseling clinics in Shiraz family. Psychological Methods and Models, 12(44), 69-90.‏ Doi:10.30495/JPMM.2021.27485.3334
Besharat Garamaleki R, panahali A, hosseininasab M D. (2022). Comparison of the effectiveness of reality-based couple therapy and group Forgiveness Therapy on marital adjustment, emotional differentiation and intimacy of couples with emotional divorce, Journal of Counseling Research, 20 (80), 129-157. Doi:10.18502/qjcr.v20i80.8490
Blume, T. W. (2006). Becoming a family counselor: A Bridge to family therapy theory and practice. Hoboken, NJ. USA: wiley. https://books.google.com/
Bracke, P. F., Colman, E., Symoens, S. A., & Van Praag, L. (2010). Divorce, divorce rates, and professional care seeking for mental health problems in Europe: a cross-sectional population-based study. BMC Public Health, 10(1), 1-12.‏ http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/10/224
Breslau, J., Miller, E., Jin, R., Sampson, N. A., Alonso, J., Andrade, L. H.,... & Kessler, R. C. (2011). A multinational study of mental disorders, marriage, and divorce. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 124(6), 474-486.‏ Doi:10.1111/j.1600-0447.2011.01712.x
Case, B. (2005). Healing the wounds of infidelity through the healing power of apology and forgiveness. Journal of Couple & Relationship Therapy, 4(2-3), 41-54.‏ Doi:10.1300/J398v04n02_05
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (2016). Provisional number of marriages and marriage rate: United States, 2000-2016.
Crawford, M., & Unger, R. (2004). Women and Gender: A feminist psychology. 4th edition. New York. NY, USA: Mc Graw- Hill. Doi:record/2004-21909-000
Dale, B., Söderhamn, U., & Söderhamn, O. (2012). Psychometric properties of the Norwegian version of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-30) among older people living at home. Psychology research and behavior management, 5, 151-157.‏ Doi: 10.2147/PRBM.S37502
Etemadi, Azra. (2008). Increasing marital intimacy. Psychotherapical Novelties. 13 (49-50), 21-42. http://ensani.ir/fa/article/24535/
Etemadi, O., Navabinejad, S., Ahmadi, S., & Farzad, V. (2018). The effect of couple therapy with imagotherapy method on increasing the intimacy of couples referring to counseling centers in Isfahan. Journal of Counseling Research, 5(19), 9-22. Doi: 10.5958/0973-9130.2018.00038.5
European Commission. (2015). Demography Report. Publications Office of the European Union. Doi: 10.2767/769227
Farhadi, A., Salehin, S., Aghayan, S., Keramat, A., & Talebi, S. (2020). The effectiveness of reality therapy based on choice theory on marital intimacy and sexual satisfaction of newly married women. Avicenna Journal of Nursing and Midwifery Care, 28(2), 83-92.‏ ‎Doi: 10.30699/ajnmc.28.2.83
Gibb, S. J., Fergusson, D. M., & Horwood, L. J. (2011). Relationship separation and mental health problems: findings from a 30-year longitudinal study. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 45(2), 163-169.‏ Doi:10.3109/00048674.2010.529603
Goldberg, D. P. (1979). A scaled version of the Goldberg & Hiller Questionnaire. Psychological Medicine, 9, 139-145.‏ Doi: 10.1017/s0033291700021644
Griffin, B. J., Worthington, E. L., Lavelock, C. R., Wade, N. G., & Hoyt, W. T. (2015). Forgiveness and mental health. Forgiveness and health: Scientific evidence and theories relating forgiveness to better health, 77-90.‏ Doi:10.1007/978-94-017-9993-5_6
Hald, G. M., Ciprić, A., Øverup, C. S., Štulhofer, A., Lange, T., Sander, S., ... & Strizzi, J. M. (2020). Randomized controlled trial study of the effects of an online divorce platform on anxiety, depression, and somatization. Journal of family Psychology, 34(6), 740-751. Doi:10.1037/fam0000635
Hewitt, B., & Turrell, G. (2011). Short-term functional health and well-being after marital separation: Does initiator status make a difference? American Journal of Epidemiology, 173(11), 1308-1318. Doi:10.1093/aje/kwr007
Hewitt, B., Turrell, G., & Giskes, K. (2012). Marital loss, mental health and the role of perceived social support: Findings from six waves of an Australian population based panel study. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 66(4), 308-314. Doi:10.1136/jech.2009.104893
Kardan-Souraki, M., Hamzehgardeshi, Z., Asadpour, I., Mohammadpour, R. A., & Khani, S. (2016). A review of marital intimacy-enhancing interventions among married individuals. Global Journal of Health Science, 8(8), 74. Doi: 10.5539/gjhs.v8n8p74
Langdridge, D., Gabb, J., & Lawson, J. (2018). Working with group-level data in phenomenological research: A modified visual matrix method. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 1(1), 1–23. Doi:10. 1080/14780887.2018.1499838
Lee, L. A., Sbarra, D. A., Mason, A. E., & Law, R. W. (2011). Attachment anxiety, verbal immediacy, and blood pressure: Results from a laboratory analog study following marital separation. Personal Relationships, 18(2), 285-301.‏ Doi:10.1111/j.1475-6811.2011.01360.x
Lee, Y. R., & Enright, R. D. (2014). A forgiveness intervention for women with fibromyalgia who were abused in childhood: A pilot study. Spirituality in Clinical Practice, 1(3), 203-217. Doi: 10.1037/scp0000025
McCullough M.E, Bellah C.G, Kilpatrick S.D, Johnson J.L. (2001). Vengefulness: Relationships with forgiveness, rumination, well-being] .and the Big Five. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 27(5), 601-10. Doi:10.1177/0146167201275008
Monden, C. W., Metsä-Simola, N., Saarioja, S., & Martikainen, P. (2015). Divorce and subsequent increase in uptake of antidepressant medication: a Finnish registry-based study on couple versus individual effects. BMC Public Health, 15(1), 1-8. Doi:10.1186/s12889-015-1508-9
Mullen, L. M., Bistany, B. R., Kim, J. J., Joseph, R. A., Akers, S. W., Harvey, J. R., & Houghton, A. (2023). Facilitation of forgiveness: Impact on health and well-being. Holistic Nursing Practice, 37(1), 15-23.‏ Doi:10.1097/HNP.0000000000000559
Park, J. H., Enright, R. D., Essex, M. J., Zahn-Waxler, C., & Klatt, J. S. (2013). Forgiveness intervention for female South Korean adolescent aggressive victims. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 34(6), 268-276. Doi:10.1016/j appdev.2013.06.001
Pasha, H., Basirat, Z., Esmailzadeh, S., Faramarzi, M., & Adibrad, H. (2017). Marital intimacy and predictive factors among infertile women in northern Iran. Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research, 11(5), 13-17. Doi:10.7860/JCDR/2017/24972.9935
Pouryahya, F., Shirkavand, A., Salimi, M., Shakarami, M., Davarniya, R. (2019). The Effect of Group Forgiveness-Based Intervention on Marital Intimacy of Women Affected by Infidelity of Spouse. Internal Medicine Today, 25(2), 102-109. http://imtj.gmu.ac.ir/article-1-3043-fa.html
Salem, P., Sandler, I., & Wolchik, S. (2013). Taking stock of parent education in the family courts: Envisioning a public health approach. Family Court Review, 51(1), 131-148.‏ Doi:10.1111/fcre.12014
Sanai, b. (2000). Family and marriage measurement scales. Tehran: Besat. https://besatpub.ir/
Sharma, B. (2011). Mental and emotional impact of divorce on women. Journal of the Indian academy of applied psychology, 37(1), 125-131.‏ https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/
Stevens, N. A. (2005). How Virtues and Values Affect Marital Intimacy. Department of Marriage and Family Therapy Masters of Science. Brigham Young University. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/604
Taghavi, S.M.R.. (2001). Validity And Reliability Of The General Health Questionnare (GHQ-28) In College Students Of  Shiraz University. Journal of Psychology, 5 (4), 381-398. https://www.sid.ir/paper/54489/fa
Toussaint, L., Lee, J. A., Hyun, M. H., Shields, G. S., & Slavich, G. M. (2023). Forgiveness, rumination, and depression in the United States and Korea: A cross‐cultural mediation study. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 79(1), 143-157. Doi:10.1002/jclp.23376
Vezzetti, V. C. (2016). New approaches to divorce with children: A problem of public health. Health psychology open, 3(2), 777-780. Doi:10.1177/2055102916678105
World Health Organization. (2013). WHO traditional medicine strategy: 2014-2023. World Health Organization.‏ http://iris.wpro.who.int/handle/10665.1/11340
Zarei, Eghbal., Dehghan Marihe, Marie., Asgari, Mahin., & Naziri, Ghasem. (2016). Investigating the effectiveness of forgiveness-based education on the dimensions of women's adjustment after divorce in Shiraz. Women and Society, 8(4), 21-38. Doi:  20.1001.1.20088566.1396.8.32.2.7.

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 13 August 2023
  • Revise Date: 25 September 2023
  • Accept Date: 16 October 2023

Share

How to cite

Statistics