The effect of Group Hope Therapy on subjective wellbeing, acceptance and rumination in HIV+ patients

Women and men afflicted with HIV bear specific physical, mental and social problems. The aim of this research was to determine the effects of group hope therapy on subjective wellbeing, acceptance and rumination in HIV+ patients. The present study was a randomized clinical trial research with a pretest-posttest and control group. The study population included all the people infected with AIDS virus (HIV+) who referred to counseling and treatment center of behavioral disorders in Tabriz. The samples were selected through convenience sampling method. Total of 30 participants with the criteria for inclusion in the study were selected and randomly placed in one of the two groups (control and experimental groups). The research tools consisted of Reef Psychological Wellbeing Scale and acceptance and focus on thinking subscales of Emotion Regulation Strategies Questionnaire. The experimental group received 8 sessions of group hope therapy (independent variable). Data were analyzed by SPSS-19 software using multivariable covariance analysis (MANCOVA). Results of multivariate covariance analysis (MANCOVA) showed that group hope therapy positively affected the subjective wellbeing, acceptance and rumination in HIV+ patients (P<0.001). It seems hope therapy could be useful as a new treatment in domains of supportive psychological therapies in patients infected with HIV.