Effect of Positive Psychology Online Group Therapy on Spiritual Well-Being, Positive and Negative Affect of Working Women in COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background: Positive psychology is a branch of psychology that deals with the factors shaping mental health, even in dangerous situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic, by emphasizing human capabilities. Objectives: The present study aimed to investigate the impact of positive psychology in online group meetings on the spiritual well-being and positive and negative effects of Iranian working women during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The present study was a clinical trial conducted with a pre-test, post-test, 1-month follow-up, and a control group conducted on all Iranian working women aged 18 - 45 years who were users of social networks (such as Instagram, Telegram, and WhatsApp) in 2022 - 2023. The sample was selected by convenience sampling and included 52 women assigned to the experimental (26 women) and control (26 women) groups. Data were collected using the Spiritual Well-Being scale (SWBS) of Paloutzian and Ellison and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). The experimental group received 6 one-hour training sessions. The data were analyzed using a multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) through SPSS software (version 22). Results: The MANCOVA results revealed that after the intervention, there was a significant difference between the groups regarding the positive affect variable (P < 0.001), while no difference was observed between the two groups in spiritual well-being and negative affect (P > 0.05). Conclusions: The findings recommend interventions based on positive psychology to increase positive affect due to its emphasis on the positive points of the current situation and strengthening them, leading to the adoption of an active stance towards life. On the other hand, the insignificant effect of the treatment on spiritual well-being and negative effects necessitates more studies and more serious and long-term interventions.