The Efficacy of a Logotherapy Educational Program Based on Rumi’s Thoughts on the Mental Well-being of Chronic Mental Patients’ Families

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of a logotherapy educational program based on Rumi’s thoughts on the mental well-being of chronic mental patients’ families. Methods: This study employed a semi-experimental controlled pretest-posttest design. The statistical population comprised families of all chronic mental patients (aged 18 to 60) who lived in Kermanshah’s rehabilitation and care facilities in 2020. One facility was randomly selected as the research sample, and 32 eligible individuals were randomized to experimental (n = 16) and control (n = 16) groups. Upon assignment, both groups completed the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being scale (2007) as the pretest. Subsequently, the experimental group participated in ten 90-minute sessions of logotherapy based on Rumi’s thoughts. At the conclusion of the intervention, the posttest was administered to both groups. The data were analyzed using an analysis of covariance. Results: The findings revealed a statistically significant difference between the two groups, indicating that the logotherapy educational program based on Rumi’s concepts increased the experimental group’s mental well-being compared to the control group (P < 0.001). In other words, families who participated in the Rumi-inspired logotherapy program experienced improved mental well-being. Conclusions: Families of chronic mental patients in our culture have a greater acceptance and comprehension of them. Furthermore, these cultural metaphors and allegories have increased the ability of chronic mental patients’ families to make sense of their sufferings, demonstrating its effectiveness as an intervention.