Comparing the Effect of Schema Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Treatment on Psychological Well-Being among Individuals with Vitiligo Skin Disease: A Pilot Study

Vitiligo disease is one of the most common skin color disorders that can reduce the psychological well-being of individuals. The purpose of this study was to the comparison of the effectiveness of schema therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) among the psychological well-being of individuals with vitiligo skin disease of Ahvaz.

This study was experimental with pre-test, post-test, follow-up, and a control group. The statistical population of the study consisted of all patients with vitiligo skin disease referred to dermatologists in dermatology and cosmetic clinics in Ahvaz in 2019. Using the purposeful sampling method, 45 persons were selected and randomly divided into two experimental groups and one control group, each group including 15 participants. In order to collect data, Ryff Psychological Well-being Questionnaire was used. The experimental groups underwent eight 90-minute sessions of schema therapy and ACT, but the control group did not receive any intervention. Data were analyzed using covariance analysis via SPSS software version 22.

In the acceptance and commitment group, the mean (SD) psychological well-being score increased from 46.8 (8) in the pre-test to 80.8 (7.9) in the post-test and 79.2 (7.7) in the follow-up stage, P<0.001. In the schema therapy group, the mean (SD) psychological well-being score increased from 43.6 (7.5) in the pre-test to 77.6 (8.5) in the posttest and 76.1 (7.3) in the follow-up stage, P<0.001. In the control group, the mean (SD) psychological well-being score increased from 44.4 (7.5) in the pre-test to 43.3 (9.2) in the post-test and 47 (6.7) in the follow-up stage, which was not statistically significant.

It can be concluded that ACT and schema therapy lead to an increase in people's psychological well-being with vitiligo skin disease, but there was no difference between the two treatments' effectiveness in well-being.