The Comparison of the Effects of Choice Theory Therapy and Behavioral Activation Therapy with and without Guided Mental Imagery on Resilience in Substance-Dependent Adolescents

Objective: This study aimed to compare the effects of choice theory therapy and behavioral activation (BA) therapy with and without guided mental imagery on resilience in substance-dependent adolescents. Method: The present study was quasi-experimental with pretest-posttest design with a control group. The study sample included 60 substance-dependent adolescents who were selected by convenience sampling and randomly placed into the first (choice theory therapy, n=15), the second (behavioral activation therapy without guided mental imagery, n=15), and the third experimental groups (behavioral activation therapy with guided mental imagery, n=15) as well as control group (n=15). Participants in all four groups completed the Conner-Davidson resilience scale. The data were analyzed using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measurement. Results: The results showed that there was a significant difference between the effectiveness of choice theory therapy and behavioral activation therapy with and without guided mental imagery on the increase of resilience in substance-dependent adolescents, so that behavioral activation therapy with guided mental imagery had a more effect on the increase of resilience in substance-dependent adolescents than choice theory therapy and behavioral activation therapy without guided mental imagery. Conclusion: In general, it can be said that behavioral activation therapy with mental imagery technique is a more effective method to increase resilience in substance-dependent adolescents.