Volume 4, Issue 3 (September 2025)                   IJER 2025, 4(3): 1-13 | Back to browse issues page

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Samami M, Sheybani H, Taher M. (2025). Acceptance and Commitment-Based Therapy for Improving Emotional Recognition and Distress Tolerance in Female Students with Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder. IJER. 4(3), 1-13.
URL: http://ijer.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-335-en.html
1- Department of Psychology, Sha.C., Islamic Azad University, Shahrood, Iran
2- Assistant professor, Department of psychology, Payame Noor university, Tehran, Iran , Hosein.sheybani@pnu.ac.ir
3- Department of Psychology, Sha.C., Islamic Azad University, Shahrood, Iran
Abstract:   (1434 Views)
Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on emotional recognition and distress tolerance in female students with Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD).
Methods: This applied research employed a semi-experimental design with a pre-test–post-test control group. The statistical population consisted of all first-grade female secondary school students in Qods city during the academic year 2022–2023. A total of 32 students who scored above the cutoff (≥4 in self-report and ≥3 in parent-report) on the Affective Reactivity Index and met clinical interview criteria for DMDD were selected using purposive sampling. Participants were randomly assigned to experimental (n = 16) and control (n = 16) groups. Data collection tools included the Ekman and Friesen Facial Emotion Recognition Questionnaire and the Simmons and Gaher Distress Tolerance Scale. The experimental group received ACT in eight sessions (twice weekly, 90 minutes each), while the control group received no intervention. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance.
Results: Findings indicated that the experimental group showed significantly higher scores in emotional recognition and distress tolerance compared to the control group (p < 0.05). Thus, ACT was effective in improving emotional recognition and distress tolerance among female students with DMDD.
Conclusions: Considering the positive effects of ACT on emotional recognition and distress tolerance in female students with DMDD, it is recommended that counselors and psychologists integrate ACT-based exercises into therapeutic interventions.
Full-Text [PDF 384 kb]   (796 Downloads)    
Type of Study: Original | Subject: Educational Studies
Received: 2025/01/26 | Accepted: 2025/04/14 | Published: 2025/09/1

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