Effectivness of Hope Therapy base on Group on Mental Health and Meaning in Life in Depressed Female Students

Aim: the aim of this research was to investigate the effect of Hope Therapy on mental health and meaning in life of depressed teenage girls. Methods: The research method was semi-experimental with pretest-posttest, and control group. The statistical population included all high school girls in Isfahan in 2016 and the statistical sample of the study included 24 girls who were selected by cluster sampling method and whose score on Beck-2 depression questionnaire was between 16 to 46, and who were diagnosed with depression through clinical interviews. These individuals were randomly assigned to two experimental and control groups. Afterwards, Hope Therapy was performed in a group format in 8 steps for the subjects in the experimental group, while the  control group did not receive any interventions. General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ) were used in the pretest and posttest stages. Multivariate analysis of covariance was used to analyze the data. Findings: The findings showed that group hope-therapy had a significant effect on increasing mental health and meaning in life of depressed girls in the experimental group. Conclusion: It can be concluded that hope therapy base on group can be an effective intervention in promoting mental health and meaning of life of depressed adolescent girls.