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The effectiveness of empathy and positive communication skills training on anxiety in adolescent girls
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Soheila Geraminia    , Somayeh Nakhaei * , Abdolghader Shahzehpour |
| Department of Psychology, Zab.C., Islamic Azad University, Zabol, Iran , so.nakhaei@iau.ir |
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Abstract: (17 Views) |
Background and aim: Adolescence, especially in girls, is accompanied by rapid physical, cognitive, and social changes that can lead to increased anxiety. The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of empathy and positive communication skills training on anxiety in adolescent girls.
Materials and methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted with a pretest–posttest design and a control group. The statistical population comprised all ninth-grade girls in Hamun County, Sistan and Baluchestan Province, during the academic year 2024–2025. From among 895 students, 45 eligible students were randomly selected and assigned to two experimental groups (empathy training and positive communication training) and one control group. Data were collected using the Beck Anxiety Inventory in both the pretest and posttest, and the training was delivered by the researcher in the form of 8-session, 90-minute face-to-face group packages. Data analysis was performed using descriptive statistics and analysis of covariance in SPSS version 27.
Findings: The results showed that both interventions, empathy and positive communication, had a significant effect on reducing anxiety in adolescent girls. The mean anxiety scores in the empathy intervention group (42.5±4.2 to 28.3±3.5) and positive communication (45.7±5.0 to 30.6±0.4) decreased compared to the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.01).
Conclusion: Training in empathy and positive communication skills can be considered as effective interventions in reducing anxiety in adolescent girls and it is recommended to be used in educational and counseling programs in schools. |
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| Keywords: Empathy, Communication, Anxiety, Adolescent, Mental health |
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Full-Text [PDF 473 kb]
(9 Downloads)
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Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
Special
Received: 2026/05/15 | Accepted: 2026/09/14 | Published: 2026/09/22
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