Effectiveness of Group Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Depression, Cognitive Flexibility, and Cognitive Regulation of Emotion in Women with Breast Cancer

Background: In this research, the effectiveness of group cognitive behavioral therapy on depression, cognitive flexibility, and cognitive regulation of emotion in women with breast cancer was discussed. Methods: This research was a quasi-experimental study with two experimental and control groups, conducted on 30 women with breast cancer in Tehran who participated in the study willingly and knowingly. The subjects were divided into two groups based on random sampling. This research used Beck Depression Questionnaire, Dennis and Vander Wal Cognitive Flexibility Questionnaire, Garnefski, Kraaij and Spinhoven Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, and the Leahy group cognitive behavioral protocol. The treatment protocol was conducted during eight 90-minute sessions. Finally, a post-test was taken from both groups two months later. The collected data was entered into the SPSS-20 program and analyzed with covariance statistical tests and a significance level of 0.05. Results: The results indicated a significant difference between the scores of the two groups in depression, cognitive flexibility, and cognitive regulation of excitement (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Based on the findings, it was concluded that increasing the cognitive flexibility and cognitive regulation of emotions of women with breast cancer can enhance the cognitive behavioral therapy group method.