Adolescent girls, coping strategy, distress tolerance, positive group training

This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of positive group training on distress tolerance and coping strategies in adolescent girls in foster care in Tehran, Iran. This study was quasi-experimental with a pre-test and post-test design with a control and follow-up group. Among 85 girls in the foster care center, 30 girls between the ages of 12-17 were selected by convenience sampling and were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups (15 in each group). The instruments used in this study included Distress Tolerance Scale, Coping Strategies Questionnaire, and Positive Training Protocol. First, all subjects were pre-tested, and then the experimental group started a positive group training during eight two-hour sessions, but no intervention was performed on the control group. At the end of the intervention, both groups were compared by post-test. Also, to follow up, both groups answered the mentioned questionnaires after two months. Multivariate analysis of covariance with repeated measures was used to analyze the statistical data. The multivariate analysis of covariance results with repeated measures showed a significant effect of positive attitude training on increasing anxiety tolerance and coping strategies compared with the control group in nodules of homeless adolescent girls. There was also a significant difference between the two groups in the follow-up stage using a multivariate analysis of covariance. Also, the results showed stability in the follow-up phase between the two groups.