Fatemeh Shariati, Majid Pourfaraj,
Volume 28, Issue 6 (1-2026)
Abstract
Introduction: Adolescence is a stressful stage that can affect the mental health and social adjustment of adolescents. The purpose of this study is to compare the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy on distress tolerance and social adjustment in adolescents with social anxiety.
Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design and a control group. The statistical population consisted of male high school students with social anxiety in district one of Babol city, who were studying in the 2022-2023 academic year. From this population, 45 individuals who met the study's entry criteria were selected via purposive sampling and were randomly assigned to three groups (15 in the first experimental group, 15 in the second experimental group, and 15 in the control group). Data were collected using the Bell Social Adjustment Inventory (1961) and the Simmons & Gaher Distress Tolerance Scale (2005). The data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) (P < 0.05).
Results: The findings showed that cognitive behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy caused a significant increase in distress tolerance and social adjustment of adolescents with social anxiety (P < 0.001), and there was no significant difference between the effectiveness of these treatments on distress tolerance and social adjustment.
Conclusions: The results showed that the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy and therapy based on acceptance and commitment therapy on distress tolerance is not different. Therefore, these two treatment methods can be recommended to improve distress tolerance and social adaptation in adolescents with social anxiety.
