Volume 7, Issue 4 (December 2025)                   IEEPJ 2025, 7(4): 1-10 | Back to browse issues page

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Karimi M, Besharat M A, Sharifirad G. (2025). Effectiveness of Paradoxical Therapy on Emotion Regulation Difficulties in College Entrance Examination Students. IEEPJ. 7(4), 1-10.
URL: http://ieepj.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-1002-en.html
1- PhD student in counseling, Qom Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qom, Iran
2- Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran , besharat@ut.ac.ir
3- Faculty of Health, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran
Abstract:   (1098 Views)

Objective: This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of paradoxical therapy on emotion regulation difficulties in students preparing for university entrance exams.
Methods: The present research employed a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design with a control group. The population included all university entrance exam students residing in boarding schools in Qom during the 2023–2024 academic year. Using purposive sampling, 30 students were selected and randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 15) and a control group (n = 15). The instruments used were the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS; Gratz & Roemer, 2004) and the Test Anxiety Scale (TAS; Sarason, 1977). The experimental group received paradoxical therapy intervention over six sessions, each lasting up to 45 minutes, conducted every two weeks. The control group received no intervention. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 25 and one-way ANCOVA.
Results: Findings indicated that paradoxical therapy significantly improved emotion regulation in the students preparing for university entrance exams.
Conclusions: Paradoxical therapy can be employed as a complementary therapeutic approach to enhance emotion regulation in students.

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Type of Study: Original | Subject: Educational Psychology
Received: 2025/01/15 | Accepted: 2025/04/21 | Published: 2025/12/1

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