Effectiveness of Compassion-focused Therapy on Self-esteem, Empathy, and Forgiveness in Child Labor

Child labour refers to the exploitation of children through any form of work that deprives them of their childhood, and threatens their mental, physical, and educational health. The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of compassion-focused therapy on self-esteem, empathy, and forgiveness in child labour.

This research was a quasi-experimental study with pretest-posttest control group design. The population of the present study consisted of all 10 to 14 years old girls engaged in child labor in Tehran in 2019. The research sample consisted of 24 girls who were selected through convenience sampling, based on the inclusion criteria. The instruments used included Coopersmithchr('39')s Self Esteem Inventory (1967), Forgiveness Questionnaire (Rye et al., 2001) and Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis, 1983). Initially, all children were pre-tested. Then, the experimental group received eight 60-min sessions of compassion-focused therapy (Gilbert, 2009), while the control group underwent no intervention. Finally, the  post-test was conducted on both groups. Data were analyzed by covariance analysis in SPSS19.

Statistical findings indicated significant differences between experimental and the control group in terms of self-esteem (F=47.69، P ≤ 0.001). Also, the results showed that the mean difference of empathy and forgiveness variables between the experimental and control groups was not statistically significant.

Considering that self-esteem has widespread effects on childrenchr('39')s success in many areas, including the quality of interpersonal relations, education, and adaptation, it can be concluded that in affected children who have a lot of shame and self-criticism, compassion-focused therapy increases the self-esteem, by modifying and enhancing their interpersonal interactions.