Journal of Applied Psychological Research

The Impact of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on the Cognitive Flexibility and Psychological Coherence of Divorced Women

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Psychology, Roudhan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

2 Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Roudhan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of acceptance and commitment therapy on cognitive flexibility and psychological coherence of divorced women. The present study employed a quasi-experimental research method, which included a pretest, posttest, and control group design. The follow-up phase lasted for three months. The statistical population consisted of divorced women who made referrals to the Valiasr and Avai Saadat psychology clinics in Mashhad during the first six months of 2022. The experimental and control groups were randomly assigned to 15 women in the experimental group and 15 women in the control group, respectively, after the purposive sampling method was employed to select 30 divorced women. Acceptance and commitment therapy was administered to the experimental group over a period of 10 weeks, with each session lasting 90 minutes. Cognitive Flexibility Inventory (CFI) and Sense of Coherence Scale (SCS) were the questionnaires utilized in this investigation. The data were analyzed using the SPSS-23 software, which included the mixed ANOVA and Bonferroni follow-up tests. The results indicated that acceptance and commitment therapy is effective in improving the cognitive flexibility (f=49.83; eta=0.64; p<0001) and psychological coherence (f=43.23; eta=0.61; p<0001) of divorced women. Utilizing techniques such as acceptance, fault, self-as-context, connection with the present, values, and committed action, acceptance and commitment therapy can be an effective method for enhancing the cognitive flexibility and psychological coherence of divorced women, as indicated by the results of the current study.

Keywords

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Journal of Applied Psychological Research
Volume 16, Issue 4
December 2025
Pages 153-167
  • Receive Date: 20 February 2023
  • Revise Date: 11 June 2024
  • Accept Date: 07 July 2024
  • First Publish Date: 16 September 2025
  • Publish Date: 22 December 2025