Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on Military Personnel Mental Health

Aims: The armed forces of the country are more exposed to psychological damage than other employees of the occupation, due to the inherent characteristics of the military profession. The purpose of this research was to determine the effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on military personnel mental health.

Materials & Methods: This semi-experimental study with control group and assessment into pre-test, post-test and a follow up that lasted for a month was performed in all Golestan, Iran, military personnel in 2015-2016. Using targeted sampling, 60 samples were selected and divided into 2 groups of experimental and control groups. The Symptom Check List-90-Revised was used for data collection. Data was analyzed using multivariable covariance analysis in SPSS 22.

Findings: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in the post-test stage was affected 12.8% on scores of physical complaint, 24.3% on obsession, 9.1% on interpersonal sensitivity, 8.2% on depression, 11.8% on phobia and 10.2% on psychosis (p<0.001). This intervention in following stage was affected 9.9% on physical complaint, 25.2% on obsession, 7.2% on interpersonal sensitivity, 12.4% on depression and 10.6% on phobia (p<0.001).

Conclusion: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is effective on the various aspects of mental health of military personnel.