Examining the effectiveness of a narrative therapy-based psychological resilience group intervention for earthquake-affected Syrian women refugees: A mixed methods study

This study aimed to comprehensively examine the effectiveness of a Narrative Therapy-based psychological resilience group intervention for Syrian female refugees who have experienced an earthquake. Accordingly, the research was designed using an explanatory sequential mixed methods approach, integrating both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. In the quantitative phase, Two-Way Mixed ANOVA and Paired Samples t-Test were employed, while the qualitative phase utilized Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). The experimental section of the quantitative phase employed several data collection tools, including a Personal Information Form developed by the researcher, the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 (HSCL-25), the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), the WHO-5 Well-Being Index, and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). Participants who met the inclusion criteria were randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the waitlist with 14 individuals in each group. The experimental group received an eight-session narrative therapy-based psychological resilience program, while no intervention was provided to the waitlist control group. For the qualitative component, data were collected using a semi-structured interview guide developed by the researcher. According to the results of the quantitative data analysis, there was a statistically significant increase in psychological resilience and well-being levels among Syrian women in the experimental group, alongside a significant decrease in levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. In the qualitative analysis, narratives obtained from interviews with eight participants were interpreted within the framework of narrative therapy, focusing on common patterns, emotional transitions, and metaphorical expressions. Based on this analysis, a total of eighteen subthemes were identified under five overarching themes. The findings suggest that refugee individuals with a history of challenging life experiences such as war and forced migration were able to strengthen their psychological resilience by accessing alternative life narratives when faced with a new traumatic event, such as an earthquake, in their current setting. This study highlights the effectiveness of narrative therapy in processes of reconstruction following crisis and trauma, and contributes to the development of mental health-based intervention programs tailored to the needs of refugee populations. The use of a mixed methods approach further strengthens the comprehensiveness of the findings within the literature. Additionally, the study provides valuable evidence on how culturally sensitive, group-based therapeutic approaches can serve as effective tools in post-disaster recovery efforts. Keywords: Psychological resilience, Narrative Therapy, women refugee, earthquake