A Study of the Relationship between Psychological Acceptance and Self-Compassion and Attitude to Seeking Psychological Help in the Children of Disabled Veterans

Going to a counselor can play an effective role in preparing the children of disabled veterans for and maintaining their mental health in challenging situations. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between psychological acceptance and self-compassion and the attitude to seeking psychological help in the children of disabled veterans. The present descriptive-correlational study was conducted in 2017 on 217 children of disabled veterans in Ardakan, Iran. The subjects were selected by the convenience sampling method, and the data were collected using acceptance and practice, self-compassion, and seeking psychological help questionnaires. Pearson correlation and regression analysis were used to analyze the data. SPSS 23 software was used too. There was a positive relationship between the dimensions of psychological acceptance (emotional experiences and control over life) and the dimensions of self-compassion and attitude to seeking psychological help (p < 0.05). Regression analysis also showed that 31% of the variance of the tendency to seek psychological help was explained by self-compassion and psychological acceptance variables (p < 0.05). Of the two components of psychological acceptance, only control over life and among the six components of self-compassion, avoiding extreme identification, kindness to oneself and self-judgment had a significant role in predicting seeking psychological help in the children of disabled veterans. Psychological acceptance and self-compassion can play a significant role in predicting attitude toward seeking psychological help in the children of disabled veterans. Therefore, by holding educational programs to increase self-compassion and acceptance in the children of disabled veterans by schools or Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs, it is possible to increase the chance of referring to a psychologist or counselor when problems occur and thus prevent many future problems.