Effectiveness of Mindfulness Group Training on Hope and Resilience of People with Gender Dysphoria

Abstract

Background: Gender Dysphoria (GD) affects the personality, behavioral, cognitive, emotional, and metacognitive systems of individuals, and people with GD are more susceptible to psychological disorders. Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of mindfulness group training on the hope and resilience of people with GD. Materials & Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test, post-test, and three-month follow-up design and a control group. The study population comprised all people with GD visiting the State Welfare Organization of Shiraz in 2020. The sample consisted of 30 people suffering from GD, selected by convenience sampling method. We randomly divided the participants into experimental and control groups (n=15 per group). The experimental group underwent eight sessions (90-minute sessions per week) of mindfulness group training. The research instruments included the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale and Miller Hope Scale. Data analysis was performed using repeated measures ANOVA. Results: The mean age of participants was 31.49±9.19 years and 47% were male. Participants in the mindfulness group training showed significant improvement in the scores of hope (P=0.04) and resilience (P=0.03) compared to the control group. Conclusion: The findings indicated that mindfulness training using techniques such as mindful thoughts, emotions, and behavior can serve as an effective therapy to increase the level of hope and resilience in people with GD.