The effectiveness of emotion-focused couple therapy on depressive symptoms and sexual function in Women affected by infidelity

Achieving a healthy society depends on the health of families, which is also related to having normal mental health conditions and good communication Between the couples. Marital infidelity is one of the most important factors threatening the performance, stability and continuity of marital relationships. Marital infidelity refers to any sexual or emotional relationship beyond the framework of a committed relationship between two spouses. It is the subject of marital infidelity that causes mood disorders such as depression, post-traumatic stress and dysfunction of couples, which has caused the concern about family mental health and its impact on the growth and performance of children.

The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of emotion-based couple therapy on the depressive symptoms and sexual function in women affected by infidelity. The present study was a quasi-experimental study in which a pretest-posttest design with a control group was assessed by baseline after intervention and 3-month follow-up. A total of 105 women affected by infidelity referred to counseling centers and psychological service clinics of Bushehr Welfare Office in the period from May to September in 1398, taking into account the inclusion criteria, 30 of those who wished to participate in the study (With written consent) were selected and randomly assigned to the experimental group (emotion-based therapy (n = 15 and control group (n = 15)). The sexual function scale was completed and measured in three stages: The sessions of the mentioned treatments, i.e. the emotion-oriented couple therapy (8 sessions of 2.5 hours) was done in groups. Hypotheses about the effectiveness of research were tested using analysis of variance.

The results of the present study showed that the mean of depression and sexual function in the pre-test stage was not significantly different between the two groups, which indicates the homogeneity of the two groups in the pre-test stage, but there was a significant difference between the groups in the post-test and follow-up stages. It could indicate the effectiveness of the intervention on the mentioned variables and the stability of effectiveness in the follow-up phase (P <0.001).

The results of this study showed that the mentioned treatment can be used as a psychological intervention in reducing depression and improving the sexual function of affected women.