The Effectiveness of Reality Therapy on Enhancing Psychological Capital and its Components, as well as Alleviating Loneliness in Single-Parent Adolescent Girls

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 MA in School Counseling, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

2 Associate Professor, Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

3 Assistant Professor, Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

10.22067/tpccp.2024.83841.1542

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to ascertain the effectiveness of reality therapy in psychological capital and loneliness among girl adolescents within single-parent families.

Method: Employing a semi-experimental design encompassing pre-test, post-test, and follow-up assessments, the research focused on adolescent girls aged 16 to 18 from single-parent families in the Farsan district during the years 2021-2022. Through a availble sampling approach, one school was chosen from the district, followed by the random assignment of 20 out of 31 single-parent student participants to two groups of 10 based on predefined criteria. Data were collected using Luthans et al.'s (2007) Psychological Capital Questionnaire and Russell et al.'s (1980) Loneliness Questionnaire. These instruments were administered to adolescents in three stages. The experimental group participated in eight 90-minute sessions of reality therapy, while the control group did not receive any training. Collected data were analyzed by using repeated measure analysis of variance.

Findings: according to the results reality therapy training impacted psychological capital, encompassing dimensions of self-efficacy, hope, and optimism. Furthermore, it effectively led to the reduction of loneliness, and this positive influence persisted upto the follow-up phase. The findings of this study can be used to support single-parent adolescents, aiming to enhance their psychological capital and to alleviate the experience of loneliness.

Keywords: Reality Therapy, Psychological Capital, Loneliness, Single-Parent

Keywords


 
Arzoomand, S., Arzoomand, S., & Demhari, F. (2018). The effectiveness of reality therapy on feelings of loneliness of divorced children of Mashhad city. International conference of educational sciences, psychology, counseling, education and research.  https://civilica.com/doc/1010842 (In Persian) 
Corey, G. (2013). Theory and application of counseling and psychotherapy. Translated by Yahya Seyed Mohammadi, Tehran: Arsbaran Publishing.
Eitle, D. (2006). Parental gender, single-parent families, and delinquency: Exploring the moderating influence of race/ethnicity. Social Science Research, 35(3), 727-748.              https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0049089X05000256
Escalante-Barrios, E. L., Suarez-Enciso, S. M., Raikes, H., Davis, D., Garcia, A., Gonen, M., Veziroglu-Celik, M., & Hazar, R. G. (2020). Child-parent interactions in American and Turkish families: Examining measurement invariance analysis of child-parent relationship scale. Plos One, 15(4), e0230831. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0230831
Georgiou, K., & Nikolaou, I. (2019). The influence and development of psychological capital in the job search context. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 19(3), 391-409. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10775-018-9385-2
Glasser, W. (2013). Selection theory. Translated by Ali Sahebi,Tehran: Sayeh Sokhan Publications.
Hargrove, D., Caza, A., & McCarter, M. W. (2019). Third-Party Effects of Psychological Capital: Observer Attributions and Responses. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2019(1), 18119. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMBPP.2019.18119abstract
Holland, C., & Walker, M. (2018). Choice theory and interfaith dialogue: building relationships between faiths and embracing diversity. International Journal of Choice Theory & Reality Therapy37(2), 17-23. https://www.proquest.com/openview/9b681a0f83ade4fd4cbdd33a8423961a/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=1046401    
Khanzadeh, M., Aminimanesh, S., Hadian, S. A., & Aliasgari, R. (2019). Role of Locus of Control on Students Happiness with the Mediating of Optimism and Hope. Positive Psychology Research, 5(3), 29-38. https://doi.org/10.22108/ppls.2020.113941.1569 (In Persian)
Khayat Nezam, M., & Jamalvandi, A. N. (2016). The effectiveness of reality therapy on happiness and hope in children of divorce in Ilam city. Quarterly Journal of Psychology and Educational Sciences, 2(18), 199-209.                . https://civilica.com/doc/1501384 (In Persian)
Lamarche, L., Tejpal, A., & Mangin, D. (2018). Self-efficacy for medication management: a systematic review of instruments. Patient Prefer Adherence, 12, 1279-1287. https://doi.org/10.2147/ppa.S165749
Lamb, G. E. (2017). Fatherlessness: Implications for God's Word, Church, and World. Christian Education Journal, 14(1), 99-108. https://doi.org/10.1177/073989131701400109
Law, F. M., & Guo, G. J. (2015). The Impact of Reality Therapy on Self-Efficacy for Substance-Involved Female Offenders in Taiwan. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 59(6), 631-653. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624x13518385
Law, F. M., & Guo, G. J. (2017). Choice and Hope:A Preliminary Study of the Effectiveness of Choice-Based Reality Therapy in Strengthening Hope in Recovery for Women Convicted of Drug Offences in Taiwan. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 61(3), 310-333. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624x15596392
Lee, C.-h., & Chu, K.-K. (2016). Understanding The Effect Of Positive Psychological Capital On Hospitality Interns' Creativity For Role Performance. International Journal of Organizational Innovation (Online), 8(4), 213-222. https://www.proquest.com/openview/9f882603cb236abae66ed498277c71a8/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=55118 
Mirdrikvand, F., Panahi, H., & Hoseyni Ramaghani, N. S. (2016). Loneliness of The Elderly: The Role of Communication Skills, Social Support and Functional Disability. Aging Psychology, 2(2), 113-103. https://jap.razi.ac.ir/article_582.html (In Persian)     
Mohabi Nuruddin Vand, M. H., Shahni Yilaq, M., & Pasha Sharifi, H. (2014). Investigating the simple and multiple relationship between psychological capital dimensions and students' academic performance. Scientific Journal of Social Psychology, 11(40), 61-79.
              https://jsr-e.isfahan.iau.ir/article_534316.html (In Persian)                                                                                                                            
Moin, L., & Kargar, F. (2019). The effectiveness of group reality therapy on psychological capital and happiness of the blind. Iranian Quarterly Journal of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences, 32(5), 104-116. https://www.noormags.ir/view/en/articlepage/1821162 (In Persian)
Moinian, D., & Molazadeh, A. (2017). Comparison of social skills, feelings of loneliness and adaptation to school in single-parent students with normal students The second international conference on innovation and research in humanities and social cultural studies. https://civilica.com/doc/809873 (In Persian)
Movahedirad, M., Ebrahimi, M. I., & Sahebi, A. (2021). The effect of teaching choice theory on the basic needs satisfaction and level of aggression among high school girls. Rooyesh-e-Ravanshenasi Journal(RRJ), 10(9), 137-148. http://frooyesh.ir/article-1-2844-fa.html  (In Persian)
Nawaz, S., Ali, U., Najmussaqib, A., Ahmed, M., & Rehna, T. (2019). The relationship between parental rejection and social skills among children of single parents. European Online Journal of Natural and Social Sciences: Proceedings, 8(2 (s)), pp. 195-202. https://european-science.com/eojnss_proc/article/view/5789/2677     
Newman, A., Nielsen, I., Smyth, R., & Hirst, G. (2018). Mediating Role of Psychological Capital in the Relationship between Social Support and Wellbeing of Refugees. International Migration, 56(2), 117-132.              https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/imig.12415
Olaleye, F. O., Ajayi, A., Oyebola, O. B., & Ajayi, O. A. (2017). The psycho-social effect of single parenthood on children academic performance among selected secondary school in Ife central local government, Osun state, Nigeria. International Journal of Higher Education and Research, 7(1), 81-109.
Purhossein, R., Ehsani, S., Ensanimehr, N., & Nabizadeh, R. (2018). Investigating the relationship between the satisfaction of basic psychological needs and satisfaction with life: the mediating role of motivation and psychological capital. Educational Psychology, 14(50), 71-87.  https://doi.org/10.22054/jep.2019.38898.2548 (In Persian)
Roshanravan, N. (2021). The Effectiveness of Reality Therapy in Improving Students' Loneliness and Academic Achievement. Journal of Assessment and Research in Applied Counseling, 3(1), 49-65. https://www.magiran.com/paper/2290182 (In Persian)
Rosidi, R., Sutoyo, A., & Purwanto, E. (2018). Effectiveness of Reality Therapy Group Counseling to Increase The Self-Esteem of Students. Jurnal Bimbingan Konseling, 7(1), 12-16. https://journal.unnes.ac.id/sju/index.php/jubk/article/view/21582
Russell, D., Peplau, L., & Cutrona, C. (1980). The Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale: Concurrent and discriminate validity evidence. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 39, 472-480. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.39.3.472
Russell, D. W., & Pang, Y. C. (2020). Loneliness. In V. Zeigler-Hill & T. K. Shackelford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences (pp. 2674-2677). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_1085
Salles, F. L. P., & d'Angelo, M. J. (2020). Assessment of psychological capital at work by physiotherapists. Physiotherapy Research International, 25(3), e1828.         https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/pri.1828
Shariatipour, S., Barabadi, H. A., & Heydarnia, A. (2019). The Effectiveness of Reality Therapy based on Choice Theory on Psychological Capital of Orphan Adolescent Girls. Journal of Counseling Research, 71(18), 37-60. https://www.noormags.ir/view/fa/articlepage/1588656 (in Persian)
Soltani, Z., Matinfar, B., Bashaar, M., & Khataei, A. (2020). The effectiveness of group reality therapy approach on promoting responsibility and resilience in high school students. Scientific Journal of Social Psychology, 8(special letter), 101-112. https://psychology.ahvaz.iau.ir/article_680973.html (In Persian) 
Sweeney, S. M., & Von Hagen, L. A. (2015). Middle School Students' Perceptions of Safety: A Mixed-Methods Study. Journal of School Health, 85(10), 688-696.            https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26331751/
Verity, L., Yang, K., Nowland, R., Shankar, A., Turnbull, M., & Qualter, P. (2022). Loneliness From the Adolescent Perspective: A Qualitative Analysis of Conversations About Loneliness Between Adolescents and Childline Counselors. Journal of Adolescent Research, 0(0), 07435584221111121. https://doi.org/10.1177/07435584221111121
Wongpakaran, N., Wongpakaran, T., Pinyopornpanish, M., Simcharoen, S., Suradom, C., Varnado, P., & Kuntawong, P. (2020). Development and validation of a 6-item Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale (RULS-6) using Rasch analysis. British journal of health psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjhp.12404
Zarei, H. A., & farzi, h. (2018). The survey of relationship between responsibility with academic self-efficacy among sixth grad student of Shahindezh in1393-1394 academic year. Rooyesh-e-Ravanshenasi Journal(RRJ), 7(9), 309-324. http://frooyesh.ir/article-1-769-en.html ( In Persian)
CAPTCHA Image