Effectiveness of Integrated Sensory-motor Therapy on Self-concept and Loneliness in Sixth Grade Female Students With Learning Disabilities in Jahrom city

Introduction and goal: 

Learning disabilities are among the most common problems of children that can seriously damage the present and future life of a child if they are not diagnosed and treated timely. This research was conducted with the aim of determining the effectiveness of sensory-motor integrated therapy on self-concept and loneliness in sixth grade female students with learning disabilities in Jahrom city.

It was a semi-experimental research with a pre-test and post-test design with two experimental and control groups. The statistical population of the research included all female students studying in the sixth grade of primary school in Jam city in 2022, from which 30 people were selected by available sampling method and replaced in two equal groups of 15 people. Sensory-motor integration therapy was applied in 8 sessions as a group and one session every week for the experimental group. Self-concept questionnaire (Sarasot, 1999) and loneliness questionnaire (Russell et al., 1980) were used to collect information. The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, statistical assumptions test and covariance analysis with SPSS-26 statistical software.

The results showed that the treatment of integrated sensory-motor therapy increased self-concept (F=38.54, P=0.014, η=0.607) and decreased difficulty in emotion regulation (F=28.79, P=0.013, η=0.625) the subjects of the experimental group were effective in the post-test stage (P<0.05).

According to the results, it can be said that sensory-motor integration exercises are effective in improving cognitive-behavioral structures in people with learning disabilities, and therapists and school counselors can use sensory-motor integration exercises to improve the psychosocial performance of these people to use.