Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy on Interpersonal Forgiveness, Self-Worth, Resilience, and Self-Injury in Adolescents with No/Bad Parenting

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on interpersonal forgiveness, self-worth, resilience, and self-injury in adolescents with no/bad parenting. This basic research employed a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest–follow-up design with a control group. The statistical population consisted of adolescent girls aged 14–18 years residing in welfare care centers in District 5 of Tehran. A total of 30 participants were selected through purposive sampling and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The experimental group received mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in eight two-hour sessions, while the control group received no intervention. Data were collected using standardized questionnaires assessing self-injury, self-worth, interpersonal forgiveness, and resilience, and analyzed using univariate and multivariate analyses of covariance. Multivariate covariance analysis indicated a significant overall difference between the experimental and control groups in posttest scores of the dependent variables. Univariate analyses demonstrated that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy led to a significant increase in interpersonal forgiveness, self-worth, and resilience, along with a significant reduction in self-injury in the experimental group compared with the control group. Effect sizes ranged from moderate to large, indicating substantial intervention impact. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy is an effective psychological intervention for enhancing positive psychological capacities and reducing self-injurious behaviors among adolescents with no/bad parenting, and it can be recommended as a supportive approach in welfare and clinical settings.