The Effect of Mobile Application-Supported Rational Belief Education Program on Rational and Irrational Beliefs of University Students

Abstract

Today, Rational Emotive-Behavior Therapy (REBT) continues to be a widely used and effective approach in psychological counseling and psychotherapy. The focus of REBT involves helping individuals reach healthy emotions and functional behaviors by changing their way of thinking through both individual and group psychological help and psychoeducation. Integrating technological advances into psychological counseling and psychotherapy practices has expanded the application areas of REBT. In particular, mobile application-based studies facilitate access to psychological counseling and psychotherapy and enable individuals to participate more actively in therapy processes. New mobile application-based approaches can increase individuals’ access to self-help tools and enable them to apply therapy processes more integrated into their daily lives. There are limited studies on the effectiveness of mobile applications based on REBT. Moreover, despite the increasing literature, research on rational beliefs has been neglected. This study examines the effect of a mobile application-supported rational belief education program (MARBEP) on university students’ and irrational beliefs. A quasi-experimental design was employed, incorporating both the intervention and control groups. This design featured pre-test, post-test, and follow-up measurements to assess the effects of the intervention over time. The study included a total of 32 university students, with sixteen participants allocated to the intervention group and another sixteen to the control group. The intervention group received an 8-session intervention program, whereas the control group received no intervention. Fourteen participants from each group completed all the measurements. The research findings demonstrated a significant decrease in irrational beliefs within the intervention group, alongside a significant increase in their rational beliefs. Furthermore, the 4-week follow-up measurements indicated that the observed changes were ongoing. In contrast, no significant changes were identified in the control group. The outcomes of this study were analyzed in conjunction with the literature, leading to the development of a series of recommendations informed by the findings.

Keywords

• Rational belief
• irrational belief
• mobile application
• intervention

Mobil Uygulama Destekli Akılcı Düşünme Eğitim Programının Üniversite Ögrencilerinin Akılcı ve Akılcı Olmayan Düşüncelerine Etkisi

Abstract

Günümüzde psikolojik danışma ve psikoterapi alanında akılcı duygusal davranış terapisi (ADDT) yaygın bir şekilde kullanılan etkili bir yaklaşım olarak dikkati çekmektedir. ADDT’deki odak hem bireysel hem de grupla sürdürülen psikolojik yardım ve psikoegitimlerde bireylerin düşünce biçimlerini değiştirerek sağlıklı duygu ve işlevsel davranışlara ulaşmalarına yardımcı olmaktır. Günümüzde, teknolojik gelişmelerin psikolojik danışma ve psikoterapi uygulamalarına entegrasyonu, ADDT’nin uygulama alanlarını genişletmiştir. Özellikle mobil uygulama tabanlı çalışmalar, psikolojik danışma ve psikoterapiye erişimi kolaylaştırmakta ve bireylerin yardım süreçlerine daha aktif katılımını sağlamaktadır. Mobil uygulama temelli yeni yaklaşımlar, bireylerin kendi kendine yardım araçlarına erişimini artırarak, terapi süreçlerini günlük yaşamlarına daha entegre bir şekilde uygulamalarına olanak tanıma potansiyeline sahiptir. ADDT temelli mobil uygulamaların etkililiği üzerine sınırlı sayıda araştırma bulunmaktadır. Üstelik artan alanyazına rağmen akılcı düşüncelere yönelik araştırmalara yeterince yer verilmediği görülmektedir. Bu araştırma, mobil uygulama destekli akılcı düşünme eğitim programının üniversite öğrencilerinin akılcı ve akılcı olmayan düşünceleri üzerindeki etkisini incelemektedir. Bu çalışmada deney ve kontrol gruplarından oluşan yarı deneysel tasarım kullanılmıştır. Bu tasarım, müdahalenin zaman içindeki etkilerini değerlendirmek için ön test, son test ve izleme ölçümlerinden oluşmaktadır. Araştırmaya 32 üniversite öğrencisi (16’sı deney, 16’sı kontrol grubunda) katılmıştır. Deney grubunda sekiz oturumdan oluşan müdahale programı yürütülürken, kontrol grubunda herhangi bir program uygulanmamıştır. Her iki gruptan da 14’er katılımcı tüm ölçümleri tamamlamıştır. Araştırma sonuçları, deney grubunun akılcı olmayan düşüncelerinin anlamlı düzeyde azaldığını ve akılcı düşüncelerinin anlamlı düzeyde arttığını göstermiştir. Üstelik, 4-haftalık izleme ölçümleri deney grubundaki değişimin devam ettiğini göstermiştir. Kontrol grubunda ise anlamlı düzeyde bir değişim saptanmamıştır. Araştırma sonuçları alanyazın çerçevesinde değerlendirilmiş ve sonuçlardan yola çıkılarak bir dizi öneri geliştirilmiştir.

Keywords

• Akılcı düşünce
• akılcı olmayan düşünce
• mobil uygulama
• müdahale

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