Healthcare Research Report: Cognitive Therapy and Patient Outcomes

This report summarizes a healthcare research study that investigated the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive group therapy on cognitive emotion regulation in patients undergoing treatment for substance abuse disorder. The study employed a quasi-experimental design with experimental and control groups, utilizing random sampling. The experimental group received cognitive group therapy sessions focusing on mindfulness skills, including awareness, breathing exercises, and stress-coping techniques. The research assessed the impact of these interventions on the patients' cognitive emotion regulation and clinical outcomes. Results indicated positive outcomes for the experimental group, particularly in improving clinical correlations and reducing negative coping strategies. The study emphasized ethical considerations and used peer-reviewed evidence to support its findings. However, the report notes limitations, such as digressions from the main purpose and the absence of reliability or validity tools. The study's research question focused on the impact of participants' perceptions and attitudes on the outcomes of cognitive group therapies. The findings support the application of mindfulness-based therapy in clinical settings, establishing a relationship between theory and practice.

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Esmaeili et al., (2018) aims to study ‘Effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive
group therapy on cognitive emotion regulation of patients under treatment’ and finds out
important correlation between the various effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy on
the betterment of the emotional parameters of the patients who are under treatment
(Spinhoven et al., 2017). The researchers of the study used a pretest-posttest type of quasi-
experimental design that included the two groups that is the experimental group and the
control group. The design that was used in the study has the added advantage of congruence,
a logical progression and an aspect of quality being added to the research (Aghaie et al.,
2018).
The researchers of the study used a random sampling to involve the participants in the
study and the subjects were affected with the substance abuse disorder and they were all in
the pharmacological management with methadone maintenance therapy. The random
sampling was the right sampling technique used by the researchers of the study as because it
is cost effective, eliminates different types of biases that can affect the research parameters
and the selection outcomes of the research (Solati et al., 2017).. As the group was divided
into two experimental and control – 60 were put in the experimental group and the rest 30
formed the control group. The education level, mean age and abuse duration were in the same
range in both the groups and the chances of selection bias were substantially reduced along
with the increase of quality of the research.
The subjects were administered with the sessions of cognitive group therapy for
certain amount session per week. The duration of the sessions were upto 1.5 hours that were
given to the subject on a per week basis. The sessions of the group therapy were varied from
each other and explored and applied an extensive set of interventions to better the
mindfulness of the patients. In the first session, the skills relating to awareness, body
scanning and auto piloting were introduced (Solati et al., 2017). The basics of the

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mindfulness exercises were taught and the importance of self-awareness were also explained
and taught to the patients. In the second session, the barriers to the process of mindfulness
such as disturbing thoughts were understood in details and the various ways of removing
these barriers were also taught to the subjects. The function and role of mindfulness were
taught and mindful breathing was one of chief lessons that were explained in this session.
Following week, conscious movements, mindful breathing, recording experiences mindful
watching, meditation, yoga stretching movements and the art of active listening were taught
to the subjects. In the four week –seeing with mindfulness, hearing with along with mindful
walking, relaxation, meditation, stress-coping techniques were being incorporated into the
patients and the skills were taught. The act of translating the skills gained into the practice of
stress coping was a vital strategy that the experimental group was educated with. In the fifth
session, critical aspects of the mediation, breathing activities and the right, appropriate
responses to the mental thoughts plus feelings were taught as well. It is very important to
understand that while the cognitive group therapy sessions were progressive in nature and in
the sixth session – the mood awareness and various self-care skills were being taught to the
subjects (Hakanen & Bakker, 2017). In the second last sessions – important self-management
skills pertaining to the sounds, body, emotions and thoughts were incorporated in the subject
to improve the level of mindfulness. In the very last session, three minute breathing and
discovering the problem and stimulating the self or personal recovery process from it was
taught to the patient. Then the questionnaires were filled up by the patients who were
involved in the study and the people’s opinions or views along with the experiences in
relation to a session were found out with complete equity and integrity. Student’s T-test was
used to analyse the findings of the research and it is critical to understand that the finding
were exact and appropriate. The research methodology, philosophical perspective, methods,

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research question, analysis were done accurately. The result interpretation with the various
scoring was important was as well to address the aims set by the researchers of the study.
As the patients had various issues with maladaptive patterns and behavioural
disturbances with negative coping hence at every point of the research, it was very critical
that the ethical considerations were taken into consideration. The researchers of the study
adhere to the bioethical principles of beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, integrity and
totality of all the participants (Esmaeili et al., 2018). The ethical parameters undertaken by
the researchers of the study was approved the ethical committee and this adds to validity and
reliability of the research.
In the interpretation section, age, gender, severity of condition, geographical location,
socio-economic background, social support, and ethnicity as well as the access to services
were taken into consideration in order to interpret the right results in an appropriate manner
(Alamout et al., 2020).. The results were very coherent to the hypothesis of the research and
almost 48.2 patients found a positive result after being intervened with the cognitive
emotional strategies that were being taught throughout the sessions and mindfulness based
strategies were helpful to these subjects also to improve their clinical outcomes and clinical
correlations (Compen et al., 2018). The negative strategies such as refocusing, self-blame and
catastrophizing were involved with the re-development of psychopathology and more than
importantly, the mindfulness based therapy was involved with the betterment of these critical
symptoms. The compliance, retention and relapse rate were found to have bettered with the
application of the mindfulness based therapy and that is why, it is critical to understand that
the researchers of the study, establishes a relationship between the theory and the practice of
the clinical research.

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The evidences that were used in the research are peer-reviewed and scholarly which
adds context and concepts to the theoretical framework of research. Moreover, the evidences
that were used in the study are from the recent literature and it supports the overall
framework of the research in an additive manner.
As for limitations of the study, the researchers of the study, at certain points – such as
in the discussion and in the conclusion section – the researchers of the study digresses from
the main purpose of the research. Moreover, no reliability or validity tool was used in the
research.
Research question:
How do the perception and attitudes of the participants impact the outcomes of the cognitive
group therapies?

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References
Aghaie, E., Roshan, R., Mohamadkhani, P., Shaeeri, M., & Gholami-Fesharaki, M. (2018).
Well-Being, Mental Health, General Health and Quality of Life Improvement
Through Mindfulness-Based Interventions: A Systematic Review and Meta-
Analysis. Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal, 20(3).
Alamout, M. M., Rahmanian, M., Aghamohammadi, V., Mohammadi, E., & Nasiri, K.
(2020). Effectiveness of mindfulness based cognitive therapy on weight loss,
improvement of hypertension and attentional bias to eating cues in overweight
people. International Journal of Nursing Sciences, 7(1), 35-40.
Compen, F., Bisseling, E., Schellekens, M., Donders, R., Carlson, L., van der Lee, M., &
Speckens, A. (2018). Face-to-face and internet-based mindfulness-based cognitive
therapy compared with treatment as usual in reducing psychological distress in
patients with cancer: a multicenter randomized controlled trial. Journal of Clinical
Oncology, 36(23), 2413-2421.
Esmaeili, A., Khodadadi, M., Norozi, E., & Miri, M. R. (2018). Effectiveness of mindfulness-
based cognitive group therapy on cognitive emotion regulation of patients under
treatment with methadone. Journal of Substance Use, 23(1), 58-62.
Hakanen, J. J., & Bakker, A. B. (2017). Born and bred to burn out: A life-course view and
reflections on job burnout. Journal of occupational health psychology, 22(3), 354.
Solati, K., Mousavi, M., Kheiri, S., & Hasanpour-Dehkordi, A. (2017). The effectiveness of
mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on psychological symptoms and quality of life in
systemic lupus erythematosus patients: a randomized controlled trial. Oman medical
journal, 32(5), 378.

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Spinhoven, P., Huijbers, M. J., Ormel, J., & Speckens, A. E. (2017). Improvement of
mindfulness skills during Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy predicts long-term
reductions of neuroticism in persons with recurrent depression in remission. Journal
of affective disorders, 213, 112-117.