The effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral doll therapy on behavioral problems in children aged 9-7 years with visual impairment

Children with visual impairments suffer from major behavioral problems that affect the child's developmental process and adaptation to their environment. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of puppetry and cognitive-behavioral therapy on internalized and externalized problems of children with visual impairment. The statistical population of this study included all children (7-9 years old) with visual impairment under the supervision of the Welfare Department of District 5 of Tehran in 2020, from which 24 people were selected by purposive sampling as a research sample and as They were randomly assigned to two experimental groups (n = 12) and a control group (n = 12). The Achenbach (1991) Child Behavioral Problems Inventory (CBCL) was used to collect information. The cognitive-behavioral puppet therapy program was performed on the experimental group in 9 sessions of 90 minutes (one session per week) as a group. Analysis of research data was performed using multivariate analysis of covariance. The results showed that after controlling the pre-test scores between the two experimental and control groups in the components of internalized behavioral problems (anxiety, isolation, and physical complaints) and externalized behavioral problems (social problems, problems). There was a significant difference in thinking, attention problems, ignoring rules, and aggressive behavior (P <0.001). Based on the above findings, it can be concluded that puppet therapy is effective in reducing the internalization and externalization problems of children with visual impairment.