The Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on the Academic Resilience in Students with Specific Learning Disability

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Professor of Educational Sciences, Faculty of Education Sciences and Psychology, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran.

2 Associate Professor, Educational Sciences, Faculty of Education Sciences and Psychology, University of Tabriz, Iran.

3 Ph.D. Candidate in Educational Psychology, Faculty of Education Sciences and Psychology, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran.

Abstract

Aim: The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on the academic resilience of students with special learning disabilities.
 
Method: This research was a semi-experimental study with a pre-test/post-test, follow-up phase, and a control group. The statistical population consisted of all female students who referred to learning disorder centers in Tehran. Through available sampling, 30 female students with special learning disabilities were selected and randomly divided into two groups of 15 people. Both groups completed the Academic Resilience Scale at three stages: before the intervention, after the intervention, and three months after the intervention. The data were analyzed using mixed variance analysis in SPSS 24.
 
Results: The results of the research showed that the Acceptance and Commitment Training program is effective on the components of academic resilience in students with special learning disabilities (p<0.001), and the effect of the intervention was stable in the follow-up phase.
 
Conclusion: Based on the findings, Acceptance and Commitment Training can improve the academic resilience of students with special learning disabilities, empowering them to face academic challenges and paving the way for their success. Further research should be conducted in the field of interventions related to students with special learning disabilities.

Keywords

Main Subjects


Arefpour, A. M., Shojaei, F. S., Hatami, M., & Mahdavi, H. (2020). Prediction of resilience based on cognitive regulation of emotion and guilty feeling in women with breast cancer. Quarterly of Applied Psychology, 13(4), 509-526. [link]
Ataii, M., Saleh-Sedghpour, B., Asadzadeh-Dahraei, H., & Sadatee-Shamir, A. (2021). Effect of self-regulation on academic resilience mediated by perceived competence. International Journal of Behavioral Sciences15(3), 156-161. [link]
Bernal-Manrique, K. N., García-Martín, M. B., & Ruiz, F. J. (2020). Effect of acceptance and commitment therapy in improving interpersonal skills in adolescents: A randomized waitlist control trial. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science17, 86-94. [link]
Blanchet, M., & Assaiante, C. (2022). Specific Learning Disorder in Children and Adolescents, a Scoping Review on Motor Impairments and Their Potential Impacts. Children9(6), 892. [link]
Bonifacci, P., Tobia, V., Marra, V., Desideri, L., Baiocco, R., & Ottaviani, C. (2020). Rumination and emotional profile in children with specific learning disorders and their parents. International journal of environmental research and public health17(2), 389. [link]
Caskey, J., Innes, P., & Lovell, G. P. (2018). Making a difference: Dyslexia and social identity in educational contexts. Support for learning33(1), 73-88. [link]
Dahl, J. (2015). Valuing in ACT. Current Opinion in Psychology2, 43-46. [link]
Dehghani, Y., Hekmatian, S., & Kamran, L. (2019). Effectiveness of emotional regulation training in improving adaptability and social adequacy of students with learning disabilities. Journal of Applied Psychology, 13(2), 229-250. [link]
Deng, L., Daverpanah, N., & Izadpanah, S. (2022). The effect of educational computer games on the academic resilience, academic self-regulation, and academic achievement of EFL students. Frontiers in Psychology13. [link]
Donolato, E., Cardillo, R., Mammarella, I. C., & Melby‐Lervåg, M. (2022). Research Review: Language and specific learning disorders in children and their co‐occurrence with internalizing and externalizing problems: a systematic review and meta‐analysis. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry63(5), 507-518. [link]
Dortaj, A., Aliakbari Dehkordi, M., Naser Moghadasi, A., & Alipour, A. (2021). The Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on Distress Tolerance, Pain Perception and Interleukin-12 in patients with Multiple Sclerosis. Quarterly of Applied Psychology, 15 (1): 49, 72, 2. [link]
Duchek, S., Raetze, S., & Scheuch, I. (2020). The role of diversity in organizational resilience: a theoretical framework. Business research13(2), 387-423. [link]
Dwiastuti, I., Hendriani, W., & Andriani, F. (2022). The impact of academic resilience on academic performance in college students during the Covid-19 pandemic. KnE Social Sciences, 25-41. [link]
Eftekari, A., & Bakhtiari, M. (2022). Comparing the Effectiveness of Schema Therapy with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on Cognitive Avoidance in GAD patients. Practice in Clinical Psychology10(1), 0-0. [link]
Garcia, Y., Keller-Collins, A., Andrews, M., Kurumiya, Y., Imlay, K., Umphrey, B., & Foster, E. (2022). Systematic review of acceptance and commitment therapy in individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders, caregivers, and staff. Behavior Modification46(5), 1236-1274. [link]
Gerhart, J. I., Baker, C. N., Hoerger, M., & Ronan, G. F. (2014). Experiential avoidance and interpersonal problems: A moderated mediation model. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science3(4), 291-298. [link]
Ghanouni, P., & Quirke, S. (2023). Resilience and coping strategies in adults with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders53(1), 456-467. [link]
Grau, P. P., Sripada, R. K., Ganoczy, D., Weinstein, J. H., & Pfeiffer, P. N. (2023). Outcomes of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for depression and predictors of treatment response in Veterans Health Administration patients. Journal of Affective Disorders323, 826-833. [link]
Helmreich, I., Kunzler, A., Chmitorz, A., König, J., Binder, H., Wessa, M., & Lieb, K. (2017). Psychological interventions for resilience enhancement in adults. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews2017(2). [link]
Hooper, N., Larsson, A., & Hayes, S. C. (2015). The research journey of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. [link]
Jang, E., Seo, Y. S., & Brutt‐Griffler, J. (2023). Building Academic Resilience in Literacy: Digital Reading Practices and Motivational and Cognitive Engagement. Reading Research Quarterly58(1), 160-176. [link]
Karampas, K., Pezirkianidis, C., & Stalikas, A. (2023). Combining Stress Mindset Training with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): An Internet-Delivered Intervention for Emerging Adults During the Pandemic. In Emerging Adulthood in the COVID-19 Pandemic and Other Crises: Individual and Relational Resources (pp. 295-314). Cham: Springer International Publishing. [link]
Kaushik, P., & Jena, S. P. K. (2021). Self-Regulation learning strategies and academic performance in students with learning difficulty. International Journal of Behavioral Sciences14(4), 172-177. [link]
Kelson, J., Rollin, A., Ridout, B., & Campbell, A. (2019). Internet-delivered acceptance and commitment therapy for anxiety treatment: systematic review. Journal of medical Internet research21(1), e12530. [link]
Knight, L., & Samuel, V. (2022). Acceptance and commitment therapy interventions in secondary schools and their impact on students' mental health and well-being: A systematic review. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science. [link]
Larsson, A., Hartley, S., & McHugh, L. (2022). A randomised controlled trial of brief web-based acceptance and commitment Therapy on the general mental health, depression, anxiety and stress of college Students. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science24, 10-17. [link]
Little, A., Tarbox, J., & Alzaabi, K. (2020). Using acceptance and commitment training to enhance the effectiveness of behavioral skills training. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science16, 9-16. [link]
Liu, W., Gao, Y., Gan, L., & Wu, J. (2022). The Role of Chinese Language Learners' Academic Resilience and Mindfulness in Their Engagement. Frontiers in Psychology13. [link]
Martin, A. J., & Marsh, H. W. (2009). Academic resilience and academic buoyancy: Multidimensional and hierarchical conceptual framing of causes, correlates and cognate constructs. Oxford Review of Education35(3), 353-370. [link]
Maryam, T., & Hosein, T. (2022). The effectiveness of online training in acceptance and commitment therapy on psychological distress and resilience of nurses with Covid-19. [link]
Mawila, D. (2022). The Mediation role of Caregivers and Context on Individual Factors in Enabling Resilience Among Learners with Specific Learning Disability. Interchange, 1-14. [link]
Mirzahosseini, H., Pourabdol, S., Sobhi Gharamaleki, N., & Saravani, S. (2016). The effect of acceptance and commitment therapy in decreasing cognitive avoidance among students with Specific Learning Disorder (SLD). Iranian Journal of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, 22(3), 166-175. [link]
Moens, M., Jansen, J., De Smedt, A., Roulaud, M., Billot, M., Laton, J., ... & Goudman, L. (2022). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to Increase Resilience in Chronic Pain Patients: A Clinical Guideline. Medicina58(4), 499. [link]
Moran, D. J., & Ming, S. (2022). The mindful action plan: Using the MAP to apply acceptance and commitment therapy to productivity and self-compassion for behavior analysts. Behavior Analysis in Practice15(1), 330-338. [link]
Muktamath, V. R., Hegde, P., & Chand, S. (2022). Types of specific learning disability. Learning Disabilities-Neurobiology, Assessment, Clinical Features and Treatments. [link]
Nemati, S., Pourtaleb, N., BadriGargari, R., Hashemi, T., Deetjen, R., & Shojaeian, N. (2022). The Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Training Program on the Level of Academic Stress and Academic Burnout in Students with Specific Learning Disability. Advances in Neurodevelopmental Disorders, 1-10. [link]
Paliliunas, D., Belisle, J., & Dixon, M. R. (2018). A randomized control trial to evaluate the use of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to increase academic performance and psychological flexibility in graduate students. Behavior analysis in practice11, 241-253. [link]
Panicker, A. S., & Chelliah, A. (2016). Resilience and stress in children and adolescents with specific learning disability. Journal of the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry25(1), 17. [link]
Pourtaleb, N., Badri, R., Nemati, S., & Hashemi, T. (2023). Development and Validation of the Acceptance and Commitment Education Program and Evaluation of Its Efficiency on Academic Resilience, Academic Stress and Academic Burnout in Students with Specific Learning Disability: A Single Subject Study. Journal of Exceptional Children, 23(2), 7-22. [link]
Rezaeisharif, A., Sobhi-gharamaleki, N., Pourabdol, S., Zarghamhajebi, M., & Beyki, M. (2021). The Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on Improving Academic Self-regulation and Psychological Flexibility in Students with Specific Learning Disorder (SLD). Journal of Psychological Studies, 17(3), 115-136. [link]
Romero, A. (2013). Educational future orientation of middle school latino students. Georgia State University. [link]
Rostami, M., Veisi, N., Jafarian Dehkordi, F., & Alkasir, E. (2014). Social anxiety in students with learning disability: Benefits of acceptance and commitment therapy. Practice in Clinical Psychology2(4), 277-284. Rostami, M., Veisi, N., Jafarian Dehkordi, F., & Alkasir, E. (2014). Social anxiety in students with learning disability: Benefits of acceptance and commitment therapy. Practice in Clinical Psychology2(4), 277-284. [link]
Ryan, A. K., Pakenham, K. I., & Burton, N. W. (2020). A pilot evaluation of a group acceptance and commitment therapy‐informed resilience training program for people with diabetes. Australian Psychologist55(3), 196-207. [link]
Scaria, L. M., Bhaskaran, D., & George, B. (2022). Prevalence of Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) Among Children in India: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, 02537176221100128. [link]
Soltaninejad, M., Asiabi, M., Ahmdi, B., & Tavanaiee Yosefian, S. (2014). A study of the psychometric properties of the Academic Resilience Inventory (ARI). Quarterly of Educational Measurement, 4(15), 17-35. [link]
Udell, C. J., Ruddy, J. L., & Procento, P. M. (2018). Effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy in increasing resilience and reducing attrition of injured US Navy recruits. Military medicine183(9-10), e603-e611. [link]
Ungar, M. (2019). Designing resilience research: Using multiple methods to investigate risk exposure, promotive and protective processes, and contextually relevant outcomes for children and youth. Child abuse & neglect96, 104098. [link]
Valizadeh, S., Makvandi, B., Bakhtiarpour, S., & Hafezi, F. (2020). The Effectiveness of" Acceptance and Commitment Therapy"(ACT) on resilience and cognitive flexibility in prisoners. Journal of Health Promotion Management, 9(4), 78-89. [link]
Widiger, T. A., Costa, P. T., & American Psychological Association (Eds.). (2013). Personality disorders and the five-factor model of personality. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. [link]
Williams, T. A., Gruber, D. A., Sutcliffe, K. M., Shepherd, D. A., & Zhao, E. Y. (2017). Organizational response to adversity: Fusing crisis management and resilience research streams. Academy of management annals11(2), 733-769. [link]
Xie, F. (2021). A study on Chinese EFL teachers' work engagement: The predictability power of emotion regulation and teacher resilience. Frontiers in Psychology12, 735969. [link]