Comparing the Effectiveness of Logotherapy and Group Compassion-Focused Therapy on Self-Care Behaviors in Knee Joint Surgery Patients with a Three-Month Follow-Up

Abstract

The present study aimed to compare the effectiveness of logotherapy and group compassion-focused therapy on self-care behaviors in knee joint surgery patients at post-test and three-month follow-up stages. This study employed a quasi-experimental design with pre-test, post-test, and follow-up assessments alongside a control group. The statistical population included knee joint surgery patients referred to treatment clinics in Semnan during the second half of 2025. A total of 45 participants were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned into three groups: logotherapy, group compassion-focused therapy, and control (15 participants in each group). Data were collected using the Miller Self-Care Scale (1982). The logotherapy intervention was conducted based on Frankl’s approach (1978), while the compassion-focused intervention followed the protocol developed by Neff and Germer (2016), both implemented in eight weekly sessions. Data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of covariance in SPSS-26. The results of repeated measures ANCOVA indicated significant differences among the three groups in self-care behaviors at post-test and follow-up after controlling for pre-test scores (p<0.05). Bonferroni post-hoc comparisons demonstrated that both logotherapy and group compassion-focused therapy significantly improved self-care behaviors compared with the control group; however, logotherapy showed significantly greater effectiveness than compassion-focused therapy. Furthermore, the therapeutic effects remained stable during the three-month follow-up period, with the logotherapy group maintaining superior outcomes compared to the other groups. The findings suggest that both logotherapy and group compassion-focused therapy are effective psychological interventions for improving self-care behaviors among knee joint surgery patients. However, logotherapy demonstrated greater effectiveness due to its stronger emphasis on meaning-making, personal responsibility, and purpose-oriented coping. Accordingly, integrating these approaches into medical and rehabilitation programs may enhance psychological adaptation and adherence to postoperative self-care behaviors in knee surgery patients.