The Effect of Positive Thinking Training on the Quality of Life of Veterans Spouses Suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress

Caring for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress can affect various aspects of spouses’ lives and their quality of life. The skill of positive thinking includes learning to think differently, about positive events and assets , negative events and assets, and valuing these assets. This research aimed to investigate the effect of positive thinking training on the quality of life of veterans spouses suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Methods and Materials: 

This intervention was conducted as a randomized field trial on 60 veterans spouses suffering from post-traumatic stress. The research sample was divided into two groups of intervention (30 people) and control (30 people) by random allocation. A quality of life questionnaire(SF-36) was completed by caregivers before, after and two months after the training. The intervention included teaching positive thinking in 8 sessions. The data were analyzed through paired t-test and chi-square at a significance level of 0.05.

At the beginning of the study, there was not any statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of demographic characteristics and the eight dimensions of quality of life. In the intervention group, the average overall quality of life score changed from 79.2 ± 11.0 in the pre-intervention phase to 87.4 ± 11.1 in the post-intervention phase and 95.8 ± 8.6 in the two-month phase. It was significantly higher than the control group (p<0.005).

Considering the effectiveness of positive thinking training on the quality of life of the veterans spouses suffering from post-traumatic stress, it is recommended to use programs based on positive thinking in order to improve their quality of life.