The Effectiveness of Positive Group Psychotherapy for Improving Psychological Well-Being in Peer Support for People with HIV/AIDS on Medan Plus In Medan City

Abstract

Peer supporters who are living with HIV/AIDS play a crucial role in assisting and exchanging information with other individuals living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). The desire to contribute more effectively motivates PLHIV to become peer supporters. However, they often encounter challenges that affect their psychological well-being while fulfilling their responsibilities. This research aims to evaluate the effectiveness of group positive psychotherapy in enhancing the psychological well-being of peer supporters among PLWHA. The study employed a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design, utilizing a non-probability sampling method for data collection. The participants included an experimental group (n = 10) and a control group (n = 10). The positive psychotherapy group module comprised five sessions, covering topics such as positive introduction and gratitude journaling, character strengths and signature strengths, hope and optimism, altruism, and meaning and purpose. The Psychological Well-Being Scale-27 (PWBS-27) was used for measurements. Data analysis involved the application of the Mann-Whitney nonparametric statistical test. The results indicated a significant improvement in psychological well-being among the experimental group compared to the control group after undergoing the positive psychotherapy intervention (U = 6, Z = -3.327, p < .001, r = .74). Therefore, the group positive psychotherapy demonstrated effectiveness in enhancing the psychological well-being of individuals supporting people with HIV, yielding a relatively high effect size.