Comparing the effectiveness of intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy (ISTDP) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) on coping styles in women victims of domestic violence

Abstract

: This study aims to compare the effectiveness of Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on the coping styles of women victims of domestic violence.

Methods and Materials: This is a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test, post-test, and follow-up design. Forty-five women who were victims of domestic violence were purposefully selected and randomly assigned to three groups (ISTDP, ACT, and control). The Lazarus and Folkman (1984) coping styles questionnaire was used as the primary tool for data collection. After the pre-test, the treatment groups received 15 sessions of therapy, followed by a post-test and follow-up.

Findings: The results indicated that both treatments (ISTDP and ACT) significantly improved problem-focused coping styles and reduced the use of emotion-focused coping strategies. Significant differences were found between the treatment groups and the control group at the post-test and follow-up stages. Furthermore, changes in problem-focused coping strategies were significant from pre-test to post-test and follow-up in the treatment groups, although no significant changes were observed from post-test to follow-up.

Conclusion: This study demonstrated that both ISTDP and ACT can effectively influence the coping styles of women victims of domestic violence, improving the use of problem-focused coping strategies and reducing emotion-focused coping strategies.