Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on Levels of Self-Criticism and Suicidal Thoughts in Adolescents with Self-Harm

Abstract

The present study was conducted to examine the effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on levels of self-criticism and suicidal ideations in adolescents with self-harm. The research method was semi-experimental which was carried out with a pre-test and post-test design with a control group. The statistical population of the research included male adolescents in the age range of 13-18 years in Ardabil city in the second half of 2022. The research sample consisted of­ 30 adolescents who were selected by the purposeful sampling method and randomly replaced in experimental (15 adolescents) and control groups­ (15 adolescents). The self-criticism level scale of Thompson and Zoroff and the Beck suicidal ideation questionnaire were used to collect data. For the experimental group, eight 90-minute sessions of ACT were performed. Data analysis were done with the multivariate analysis of covariance test. Based on the findings, ACT was effective on comparative self-criticism, internal self-criticism, and suicidal ideations in adolescents with self-mutilation. Therefore, according to the results, ACT can reduce the levels of self-criticism and suicidal ideations in adolescents with self-mutilation. Therefore, counselors and therapists can use the mentioned treatment method to reduce the levels of self-criticism and suicidal ideations of adolescents.

Keywords

• act
• adolescents
• self-mutilation
• self-criticism
• suicidal ideations