فصلنامه خانواده و پژوهش
سال بیستم شماره 1 (بهار 1402)

The present study sought to develop a comprehensive family-centered program of enhancing sensorimotor functions and evaluate its effectiveness in muscle stiffness and motor skills of slow-pace children with Down syndrome. This quasi-experimental research had a pretest-posttest control group design with a follow-up session.  The statistical population of the study was comprised of all mothers of 4- to 7-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder in Kashmar in 2018-2019 who had been referred to Sa’adat and Ava Rehabilitation Centers. First, Peabody Developmental Motor Scale (Folio & Fewell, 1983) and Ashworth Scale of Muscle Spasticity  (1964) were given to the parents as the pretest. Then, among those who had gained low scores on the tests, 20 individuals were selected as the sample by convenience sampling method and were randomly assigned to experimental (N=10) and control (N=10) groups. The experimental group underwent family-centered treatment sessions to enhance sensorimotor functions, whereas and the control group did not receive any intervention. Next, both groups were post-tested using the research instruments and a follow-up test was conducted after a month. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS-22 software and ANCOVA. Results revealed that the comprehensive family-centered program of enhancing sensorimotor functions was effective in increasing muscle strength and motor skills of slow-pace children with Down syndrome (p <0.05). Hence, this program can be utilized to improve motor skills of children with Down syndrome.

An ethics-based education system leads to a transcendental society full of moral behaviors. The core of a values-based curriculum is to provide the grounds for the trainers and trainees through goals, content, teaching methods, evaluation methods and learning activities to get familiarize with moral virtues and internalize these values and moral merits in their thought, speech, and action via genuine activities. In this research, an attempt was made based on grounded theory and using Clarke's approach to analyze the situation of ethical behaviors not being shaped in accordance with the Islamic-Iranian model in students.   To this end, purposive sampling method was utilized and group interviews were conducted with informal conversations. Data analysis was done using the mapping method and the analytical organization of data was consolidated by constructing three types of maps, namely situational, social worlds/arenas, and positional maps.  To validate the findings, methods such as member checking as well as triangulation were utilized. Analyzing the obtained data on effective components in ethical behaviors not being shaped in students led to identifying eight components including "individual human agents, collective human agents, non-human components, method-based components, social components, evaluation-based components, and content and performance-based components.” The results revealed that in the destructive phenomenon of ethical behaviors not being shaped in students, there is a wide gap between the existing goals, content, methods, performance and assessment components regarded by parents, teachers and textbooks and their genuine counterparts. The results of the study were reported by drawing three maps and statement of the theory through expression of narratives and drawing figures.

Anxiety disorder is a prevailing mental condition among children and it leads to many problems in various aspects of their lives. This research was conducted to examine the impact of guided parent delivered CBT (GPDCBT) upon 7- to 12-year-old children with anxiety disorders in Tehran. This quasi-experimental research had a pretest-posttest control group design. In order to draw the sample, purposive sampling method was used and 66 children with various types of anxiety disorders who had been referred to Mofid Hospital Clinic in Tehran were chosen.  After filling out the consent form by the mothers, the subjects were randomly assigned to two experimental and control groups. At the pretest stage, all participants were assessed using Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale (1997). In the next step, the mothers in experimental group received GPDCBT in four face-to-face 1-hour sessions and four 20-minute telephone sessions and then the children received home-based intervention by their mothers. During this time, the control group was assigned to the waiting list and did not receive any intervention. At the end of the one-month treatment period and at the post-test stage, both groups were assessed again by the Spence Scale. Analysis of Covariance revealed that the mean of anxiety in the experimental group decreased significantly in comparison with the control group (F=25.11, p ≡ 0.001). The findings are indicative of the feasibility of guided parent delivered CBT for anxiety reduction in children.

This study set out to explain the parent-children relationship based on Covid-19 anxiety with the intermediary role of emotional security. This research had a correlational design. The statistical population of the study comprised all female high school students in Azna in 2019-2020 school year. The study sample included 270 students who were selected by convenience sampling. The research instruments were comprised of the Parent-Child Relationship Survey (Fine, Moreland & Schwebel, 1983), Emotional Security Scale (Frey et al. 2008), and Covid-19 Anxiety Scale (Alipour et al., 2019). Structural equation modeling was utilized to analyze the data. The results showed that Covid-19 anxiety had a significant, direct effect on emotional security (β= -0.22, p<0.01) and parent-child relationship (β= -0.32, p<0.01). In addition, emotional security had a significant effect on parent-child relationship (β= 0.25, p<0.01). The results also indicated that emotional security played a mediatory role in the relationship between Covid-19 anxiety and parent-child relationship (Z= 3.72, p <0.01). Furthermore, the results revealed that Covid-19 anxiety directly and indirectly affects parent-child relationship through emotional security. Accordingly, the adverse impacts of Covid-19 anxiety on parent-children relationship can be reduced through the strategies to foster emotional security.

This study was undertaken to examine the effectiveness of group acceptance and commitment therapy upon perceived social support and social adjustment of mothers of children diagnosed with autism in Dezful in 2019. This quasi-experimental research had a pretest-posttest control group design. The statistical population of the study comprised all mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder in Dezful from among whom 30 individuals were selected through purposive sampling method and based on inclusion criteria. The subjects were randomly put into two groups of experimental (N=15) and control (N=15). The experimental group received the intervention in eight 90-minute sessions and the control group remained on the waiting list. The research instruments included Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (Zimet, Dahlem, Zimet & Farley, 1988) and the Adjustment Inventory (Bell, 1962). Data were analyzed using ANCOVA and MANCOVA. Results showed that there was a significant difference between the two groups in perceived social support and social adjustment at the posttest stage (p<0.001). The results indicated that ACT had a positive effect on perceived social support and social adjustment of mothers of children diagnosed with autism. Due to the use of metaphors in ACT as well as emphasis on values in this therapy, it leads to increased perceived social support and social adjustment; therefore, it is suggested that ACT be considered for mothers of children with autism spectrum.

The purpose of the present study was to identify and rank factors influencing parents rage in response to the service encounter quality in private primary schools. This research took an applied approach regarding the objective, while in regard to data collection, an exploratory approach (qualitative-quantitative) was used. In the qualitative section, in-depth interviews were used to extract criteria and indices. The statistical population in this part was comprised of 12 experts. After two stages, seven criteria were identified as influencing factors on parents rage. These criteria were “not being accountable (0.725), inappropriate outcome quality (0.85), process inadequacy (0.825), poor quality of interaction (0.75), poor service (0.65), not fulfilling promises (0.775), and inappropriate physical condition (0.35)”. In the quantitative section, grey ARAS ranking technique and three expert votes were utilized. The results of the weighted matrix showed that the strongest criteria for parents rage were inappropriate outcome quality and process inadequacy. Since inadequate quality of outcome is the most common cause of parents rage, its improvement can significantly reduce parents rage.

Schools should be able to be effective in the emergence of such characteristics as creativity, self-confidence, foresight, risk-taking and the desire to succeed (entrepreneurship spirit) in students and one of the duties of education officials is to create favorable atmosphere for the emergence of these characteristics. The current research was conducted with the aim of designing a model of characteristics of entrepreneurial schools in Iran based on grounded theory. This research took a basic approach regarding the objective, while in regard to nature, an exploratory approach based on grounded theory was used. The data collection tool comprised semi-structured in-depth interviews. The statistical population of the study included specialists, educational designers, and entrepreneurship professors and trainers. For the purpose of sampling, purposive sampling method with the snowball technique was utilized. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with experts (27 individuals) until saturation was reached. The collected data were analyzed using open, axial and selective coding and the final model was extracted. The final model consists of 4 core categories, 4 categories of causal conditions, 6 categories of necessary contextual factors, 7 categories of strategies, 5 categories of environmental factors, and 2 categories of consequences of entrepreneurial schools. In general, it can be stated that entrepreneurial schools system prepare students for the real world and provide the opportunity to learn key necessary skills for success in education, career, and life.

Parental disclosures occur commonly in the context of the parent-child relationship with various motives and if undertaken inappropriately, they can be stressful for children. However, relatively little is known about the conditions and reasons that encourage parents to disclose to their children and the strategies they use for disclosing. Hence, the aim of this study was to identify the reasons that motivated maternal disclosures and the strategies utilized for disclosing. This qualitative research had a descriptive phenomenological design and the statistical population of the study included non-divorced mothers living in Tehran in 2020-2021 who had at least one child aged 10 to 30. The subjects were selected via advertisements in the cyberspace through purposive sampling method. Data collection through semi-structured in-depth interviews was continued until data saturation was reached. Data analysis by Colaizzi's method showed two main content areas including: 1) mothers disclose to their children for various reasons, including venting, seeking emotional support, and educating. 2) The strategies used by mothers in disclosures include how to express, how much and when to disclose, and setting rules. It is suggested that family counsellors take appropriate steps to prevent the negative consequences of disclosures and familiarize parents with factors that prompt disclosures and appropriate ways of expressing them.