The Effectiveness of Solution-Focused Brief Counseling on Marital Intimacy in Mothers of Children with Down Syndrome: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Abstract

Background: Parents of children with intelligence and motor problems, including Down syndrome have to spend more time babysitting resulting in less intimacy with their mates. Solution-focused brief therapy is one of the treatments presented in the field of marital intimacy. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of solution-focused counseling on marital intimacy in mothers of children with Down syndrome. Materials and Methods: In this randomized clinical trial study, 72 couples were selected among members of the Asemannili Society (Isfahan-Iran) from 19/01/2021 to 20/04/2021. The control group received an educational pamphlet for four sessions (without homework) every other week while the intervention group attended eight 90-minute online counseling programs once a week. Bagarozi Marital Intimacy Questionnaire was completed at baseline, after intervention (8th week), and follow-up period (12th week) by the women and their spouses. Results: The mean scores of marital intimacy between the two groups at baseline (online: 313.23 ± 70.86, pamphlet: 315.92 ± 41.45) compared to the 12th week (online: 370.13 ± 44.63, pamphlet: 332.42 ± 30.39) were significantly different. The analysis of the variance test with repeated observations showed that the effect of group, and time on the total score of marital intimacy and its other dimensions, were significant (P<0.05) for women.Conclusion: Both online and pamphlet counseling can improve marital intimacy in mothers of children with Down syndrome, but online counseling appears to be more effective. Thus, this method is recommended for improving the marital intimacy of these women.