The effect of reality therapy on self-efficacy in mothers of children with Down syndrome

Introduction :Down syndrome is the most prevalent abnormal chromosomal disorder in human and the best known genetic cause of mental retardation which lays the foundations for physical and congenital defects and abnormalities. Abnormal behaviors of children with Down syndrome impair their mother's self-efficacy. The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of reality therapy on general self-efficacy in mothers of children with Down syndrome. Method: In the present clinical trial, which was conducted in the welfare center of  Bandar Abbas, Iran in 2016, 40 mothers of children with Down syndrome were randomly assigned to a control and experimental group. The intervention involved holding nine 60-minute training sessions in the experimental group. The patients’ data were collected using demographic questionnaires and the General Self-efficacy Scale (Sherer et al., 1982), and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: The mean pre-intervention self-efficacy score was found to be 55.1±6.9 in the experimental group and 56.2±8.9 in the controls, while the corresponding post-intervention scores were 60.4±6.4 and 57.2±9.5. The independent t-test showed no significant differences between the two groups either before (P=0.62) or after (P=0.22) the intervention. The paired t-test also showed no significant differences in the control group after compared to before the intervention (P=0.51), although this difference was significant in the experimental group (P<0.01). ANCOVA revealed significant differences in the experimental and control groups after compared to before the intervention (P=0.034, Eta=0.16). Conclusion: Reality therapy was found to positively affect self-efficacy in mothers of children with Down syndrome. Reality therapy can be used as a proper and effective method in therapeutic and clinical interventions to improve self-efficacy in these women.