The effectiveness of mentalization-based therapy on emotion regulation and parenting stress in mothers of children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61838/jcbl.2.2.14Keywords:
Parenting stress, emotion regulation, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder,, mentalizingAbstract
The present study aimed to determine the effectiveness of mentalization-based training on emotion regulation and parenting stress in mothers of children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. The research method was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The statistical population included all mothers of children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder who had referred to psychology centers in Ardabil in the academic year 1403-1404. Among them, 30 people were selected using purposive sampling and randomly assigned to two groups of 15 people: experimental and control. Mentalization-based sessions were conducted for two 45-minute sessions per week in the experimental group. The Parenting Stress Questionnaire-Short Form (PSI-SF, Abidin, 1995), the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ, Gross & John, 2003), and the Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Scale (CPRS-26) (Connors et al., 1960) were used to collect data. The data were analyzed using multivariate and univariate analysis of variance. The findings of the study showed that by controlling for the pretest effect, there was a significant difference between the mean posttest of parental stress, emotion regulation, emotional inhibition, and cognitive reappraisal in the two experimental and control groups at the level of (P<0.05). Accordingly, it can be said that the use of mentalization-based training can be effective in improving parental stress, emotion regulation, emotional inhibition, and cognitive reappraisal of mothers with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
Downloads
References
Ali, N., Hejair, R., Alekri, E., & Jahrami, H. (2020). Psychological distress and life satisfaction in mothers of attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder children. International Journal of Medical Science and Public Health, 9(9). https://doi.org/10.5455/ijmsph.2020.09150202013092020
Amro, N. A. A. (2024). What are the challenges of mothers with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder children in Hebron district: Cross-sectional study. RGSA - Revista de Gestão Social e Ambiental, 18(7), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.24857/rgsa.v18n7-180
Ataran, N., Mozafari, M., Ghorban Jahromi, R., & Amini Manesh, S. (2024). The efficacy of positive parenting training and parenting based on mentalization on improving the mother-child relationship. Journal of Psychological Science, 23(143), 2629-2648. http://psychologicalscience.ir/article-1-2460-en.html
Claussen, A. H., Holbrook, J. R., Hutchins, H. J., Robinson, L. R., Bloomfield, J., Meng, L., & Kaminski, J. W. (2024). All in the family? A systematic review and meta-analysis of parenting and family environment as risk factors for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children. Prevention Science, 25(2), 249-271. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-022-01358-4
Di Trani, M., Ballarotto, G., Renzi, A., Sogos, C., Romani, M., Vigilante, M., & Tambelli, R. (2020). From emotional mutual to self-regulation in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a pilot study on a sample of preschool-age children and their parents. Psychology Hub, 37(3), 55-62. https://doi.org/10.13133/2724-2943/17231
Elgendy, R., I El Malky, M., & M Ebrahem, S. (2021). Effect of mindful parenting training for parents with children having attention deficit hyperactivity disorder on parenting stress. Egyptian Journal of Health Care, 12(1), 16-29. https://doi.org/10.21608/ejhc.2021.135119
Enav, Y., Erhard-Weiss, D., Kopelman, M., Samson, A. C., Mehta, S., Gross, J. J., & Hardan, A. Y. (2019). A nonrandomized mentalization intervention for parents of children with autism. Autism Research. Autism Research, 12(7), 1077-1086. https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2108
Fang, Y., Luo, J., Boele, M., Windhorst, D., van Grieken, A., & Raat, H. (2024). Parent, child, and situational factors associated with parenting stress: A systematic review. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 33(6), 1687-1705. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-022-02027-1
Featherston, R., Barlow, J., Song, Y., Haysom, Z., Loy, B., Tufford, L., & Shlonsky, A. (2024). Mindfulness enhanced parenting programmes for improving the psychosocial outcomes of children (0 to 18 years) and their parents. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD012445.pub2
Gervinskaitė-Paulaitienė, L., Byrne, G., & Barkauskienė, R. (2023). Mentalization-based parenting program for child maltreatment prevention: A pre-post study of 12-week lighthouse group program. Children, 10(6), 1047. https://doi.org/10.3390/children10061047
Ghaffari Cherati, M., Mohammadi-Pour, M., & Azizi, A. (2023). The Effectiveness of Mentalization-Based Therapy on Emotion Regulation Difficulties and Aggression in Depressed Adolescent Girls. Quarterly Journal of Modern Psychological Research, 18(17), 169-178. https://doi.org/10.22034/jmpr.2023.54765.5349
Heidari, M., & Izadi, F. (2024). Investigation of structural pattern of relationship between FOMO syndrome with nomophobia by mediating parenting stress in adolescents of Isfahan. Clinical Psychology and Personality, 22(1), 51-64. https://doi.org/10.22070/cpap.2024.18196.1415
Lotto, C. R., Altafim, E. R. P., & Linhares, M. B. M. (2024). Maternal emotional and behavioral regulation/dysregulation and parenting practices: a systematic review. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 25(5), 3515-3533. https://doi.org/10.1177/15248380241253036
Madanifar, T., Seyed Mousavi, P. S., Hashemipour, M., Tabrizi, M., & Koohi Esfahani, M. (2024). The Effectiveness of the Mentalization Promoting Program for Parents of Children with Type I Diabetes on Parental Stress: A Single-Subject Study. Journal of Diabetes Nursing, 12(2), 2424-2437. http://jdn.zbmu.ac.ir/article-1-618-en.html
Parada Fernández, P., Herrero Fernández, D., Oliva Macías, M., & Rohwer, H. (2021). Analysis of the mediating effect of mentalization on the relationship between attachment styles and emotion dysregulation. Scandinavian journal of psychology, 62(3), 312-320. https://doi.org/10.1111/sjop.12717
Passaquindici, I., Nardozza, O., Sperati, A., Lionetti, F., D'Urso, G., Fasolo, M., & Spinelli, M. (2024). Maternal dispositional mindfulness and mother-child relationship: the mediating role of emotional control during parenting. Child: Care, Health and Development, 50(3), e13264. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.13264
Peng, X. (2024). The impact of family of origin on attachment relationships and emotional regulation ability. Communications in Humanities Research, 51(1), 135-140. https://doi.org/10.54254/2753-7064/51/20242515
Ramezani-Rand, F., Heshmati, R., & Hashemi Nosratabadi, T. (2023). The Effectiveness of Mentalization-Based Therapy on Parent-Child Interaction and Parenting Stress: A Randomized Controlled Trial on Children with Tic Disorder Symptoms and Their Mothers. Applied Family Therapy, 17(4), 199-213. https://doi.org/10.61838/kman.aftj.4.3.13
Riany, Y. E., & Ihsana, A. (2021). Parenting stress, social support, self-compassion, and parenting practices among mothers of children with ASD and ADHD. Psikohumaniora: Journal Penelitian Psikologi, 6(1), 47-60. https://doi.org/10.21580/pjpp.v6i1.6681
Richmond, J. R., Tull, M. T., & Gratz, K. L. (2020). The roles of emotion regulation difficulties and impulsivity in the associations between borderline personality disorder symptoms and frequency of nonprescription sedative use and prescription sedative/opioid misuse. Journal of Contextual Behavioral ScienceVL - 16, 62-70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2020.03.002
Rivera, C. E., Coyne, L. W., Daigle, K. M., Guzick, A., Reid, A., & Shea, S. (2022). Mindfulness, parenting behavior, and children's mental health: An investigation among diverse, low-income mothers of preschool aged children. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 24, 79-86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2022.03.003
Santelices, M. P., & Cortés, P. A. (2022). Mentalization and parental stress: How do they predict mother-child interactions? Children, 9(2), 280. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9020280
Schwarzer, N. H., Nolte, T., & Fonagy, P. A. U. G. S. (2021). Mentalizing and emotion regulation: Evidence from a nonclinical sample. International forum of psychoanalysis, 30(1), 34EP - 45. https://doi.org/10.1080/0803706X.2021.1873418
Sharp, C., Shohet, C., Givon, D., Penner, F., Marais, L., & Fonagy, P. (2020). Learning to mentalize: A Mediational Approach for Caregivers. Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health, 27(3), e12334. https://doi.org/10.1111/cpsp.12334
Simões, S. C., Inácio, F., & Espirito-Santo, H. (2022). Children's social and emotional behavior: Role of maternal emotion regulation, psychopathological symptomatology, and family functioning. Análise Psicológica, 40(1), 117-131. https://doi.org/10.14417/ap.1905
Toprak, T., Ayribas, B., Degirmentepe, R. B. A. U. O. M. O., Yilmaz, M., & Verit, A. (2023). Mentalization and emotion regulation abilities in parents of children with nocturnal enuresis and its relationship with perceived caregiver burden. Northern Clinics of Istanbul, 10(3), 281-288. https://doi.org/10.14744/nci.2021.40225
Volkert, J., Georg, A., Hauschild, S., Herpertz, S. C., Neukel, C., Byrne, G., & Taubner, S. (2019). Strengthening Attachment Competencies in Parents with Mental Illness: Adaptation and Pilot Testing of the MentalizationBased Lighthouse Parenting Program/Bindungskompetenzen psychisch kranker Eltern starken: Adaptation und Pilottestung des mentalisierungsbasierten Leuchtturm-Elternprogramms. Praxis Der Kinderpsychologie Und Kinderpsychiatrie, 68(1), 27-42. https://doi.org/10.13109/prkk.2019.68.1.27
Downloads
Publication Timeline
- Submitted
- Revised
- Accepted
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 آیناز شهریور سوسهاب (نویسنده); محمد نریمانی (نویسنده مسئول); سارا تقیزاده هیر (نویسنده)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.