The effect of narrative therapy on anger control of high school adolescent girls: a quasi-experimental study

Abstract

Introduction and Aim: According to psychological and biological conditions during puberty in adolescent girls, anger management in them is important. Studying the effect of narrative therapy on anger control in high school adolescent girls in Isfahan, Iran is the study's purpose.

Methods: This study is a quasi-experimental interventional study which is included two groups including control and intervention with pretest-posttest design. This study was conducted on 72 female students aged 14-17 years using convenience sampling. Then the samples were allocated into two groups: an intervention group (n=36) and a control group (n=36). Data were collected using Spielberger Anger Questionnaire. Adolescents in the intervention group participated in 90-minute 8 sessions of narrative therapy virtually. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS software version 25 and chi-square, independent t-tests, and analysis of covariance.

Results: Independent t-test showed that before the intervention, the mean score of anger control was not significantly different between the two groups (P≺0.05), but after the intervention, in the intervention group, it was significantly lower than the control group (P <0.01). LSD post hoc test also showed that the mean anger control score in the intervention group was significantly reduced (P <0.001).

Conclusion: According to the findings based on the effectiveness of narrative therapy on controlling adolescent anger, it is recommended to psychotherapists, especially school counselors, use this therapeutic approach to control adolescent anger.