The effectiveness of mindful parenting on cognitive emotion regulation strategies and Internalized and externalized problems of preschool children with anxiety symptoms in Tehran

The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of mindful parenting on cognitive emotion regulation of mothers and Internalized and externalized problems of preschool children with anxiety symptoms in Tehran. The research method was quasi-experimental with a pretest-posttest design and a one-month follow-up period with the control group. The statistical population included all mothers of children aged 5 to 6 years with anxiety symptoms in kindergartens in Tehran, in the academic year 1397-98, 40 people were selected using the purposive sampling method and randomly placed in two groups of 20 people. In this study, the experimental group received a mindfulness parenting education program once a week in 8 sessions of 90 minutes. Participants also completed the cognitive emotion regulation Questionnaires  (CERQ, Garnefski et al., 2002) and the Children's Behavioral Problems List (CBCL, Achenbach et al., 1991) in three stages pre-test, post-test and follow-up. The results of mixed analysis of variance with repeated measures showed that mindfulness parenting education reduces cognitive emotion regulation strategies of maladaptive emotion (p <0.05, F = 10.906), and externalized problems (p <0.05, F =  0.002). and Internalized problems of children (p <0.05, F =0. 342)  had an effect and this effect remained stable during the follow-up period. According to the findings of the present study, it seems that the role of mindful parenting courses in preventing and reducing psychological problems in preschool children should be considered.