Study of the effect of the 'Compassion-Based Training Program Adapted for Adults' applied to mothers of children diagnosed with cerebral palsy on compassion, depression and psychological resilience

This research aims to examine the effects of the Adapted Compassion-Based Education Program for Adults (ACBEPA) applied to mothers of children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) on compassion, depression, and psychological resilience. The mixed design method was used in the research. The research population consists of mothers of children with CP who receive service from rehabilitation centers in the central district of Muş province. The mothers of 20 children with CP, who constitute the sample of this research, were determined by random method and were divided into 2 groups: 10 control and 10 experimental. Quantitative data of the study were obtained using the Individual Information Form, Adult Compassion Scale, Burns Depression Scale, and Psychological Resilience Scale for Adults. Qualitative data was obtained from unstructured open-ended interviews and interview notes. IBM SPSS Statistics 27 package program was used to analyze quantitative data. Content analysis was used to analyze qualitative data. In the research; It was determined that there was no significant difference between the compassion, depression and psychological resilience levels of the experimental and control groups. It was found that mothers of children with CP had high levels of compassion, depression, and psychological resilience. However, after applying a compassion-based training program adapted for adults for 8 weeks; There was a significant difference between the first and last tests of the experimental group's compassion level and behavioral compassion levels, one of the sub-dimensions of compassion (T2>T1), and a significant difference between the first, last and follow-up tests in the general depression level of the mothers in the experimental group (T1>T2, T1>T3). ), there is also a significant difference between the first test and the last and follow-up tests (T1>T2, T1>T3), which are sub-dimensions of depression, activities, and personal relationships. There is a significant difference between the first and last test in the emotions and thoughts sub-dimension (T1>T2 ), it was determined that there was a significant difference between the initial and permanence test (T1>T3) in the emotion loss sub-dimension. A significant difference was defined in the intragroup comparison of the control groups. In the study, it was concluded that a compassion-based training program adapted for adults was effective on the compassion and depression of mothers of children with CP and was partially effective on their psychological resilience. In this context, it is recommended that compassion-based training program adapted for adults and similar programs be designed and supported by universities, Non-Governmental Organisations, and Ministries.