The Effectiveness of Positive Psychology Training on Anxiety, Social Skills, and Meaning in Life Among Older Women

Background: Psychological problems and their associated vulnerabilities within older adults underscore the necessity of evaluating the impact of therapeutic interventions on their psychological well-being. Accordingly, the present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of positive psychology training (PPT) on anxiety, social skills, and meaning in life in older women in Tabriz, Iran.
Method: This was a quasi-experimental study using a pretest-posttest with a control group design. The statistical population comprised older women residing in Tabriz in 2024. A sample of 30 individuals (aged 60 to 75 years) was selected using convenience sampling and based on the inclusion criteria. Participants were randomly assigned to the experimental group (n=15) and the control group (n=15). Data were collected using the Beck Anxiety, the Jerabek Social Skills, and Steger and Frazier’s Meaning in Life Questionnaires. The therapeutic intervention was implemented based on Quilliam’s PPT psychoeducational package across eight 90-minute sessions, held twice a week. Data analysis was performed using ANCOVA in SPSS version 23.
Results: The findings indicated that PPT resulted in significant decrease in anxiety (p=.001) and the search for meaning (p=.001), as well as significant increase in social skills (p=.001) and the presence of meaning (p=.001) among older women.
Conclusion: Consequently, PPT can serve as a highly beneficial intervention for older adults. By capitalizing on character strengths, cultivating meaning in life, and enhancing social relationships, this approach can substantially contribute to improving their psychological well-being and mitigating anxiety.
EXTENDED ABSTRACT
Introduction
 Older adults often face challenges that may reduce their social participation and active engagement in society. Therefore, strategies must be sought to reintegrate older adults into society and address their physical, social, and psychological needs. Due to the serious nature of psychological problems and their associated vulnerabilities within the older adult population, further research is needed regarding the positive and negative factors associated with their psychological health to provide effective interventions for enhancing their well-being. Furthermore, a review of the literature indicates that studies have investigated the role of positive interventions on psychological variables such as anxiety, social skills, and meaning in life. Their results have shown that positive psychology training (PPT) can be effective in improving the psychological characteristics of older adults; however, to the best of our knowledge, few studies have examined the role of PPT on the aforementioned psychological variables among older women. Additionally, there is a notable research gap within the statistical population investigated in the present study (older women in Tabriz). Therefore, the current study was conducted with the aim of investigating the effectiveness of PPT on anxiety, social skills, and meaning in life among older women.
Method
The present research was applied in terms of its objective and utilized a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design. The study population comprised older women aged 60 to 75 residing in Tabriz in 2024, living either at home or in nursing homes. Thirty older women fully participated in the study. The inclusion criteria were (1) obtaining above-average scores on anxiety and search for meaning, and below-average scores on presence of meaning and social skills, (2) age between 60 and 75 years, (3) having a minimum of middle school education, and (4) being active and capable of performing routine daily activities independently. Exclusion criteria included (1) concurrent participation in another therapeutic intervention, (2) diagnosis of acute cognitive disorders, (3) neurological deficits (stroke, Parkinson’s disease, and paralysis), (4) cardiovascular disorders (acute myocardial infarction, acute heart failure, and uncontrolled hypertension), (5) unstable chronic diseases (diabetes and malignancies), (6) severe congenital defects, and (7) restrictive musculoskeletal disorders. After selecting eligible participants using convenience sampling, individuals were randomly and equally assigned (n=15 per group) to the experimental (PPT) and control groups. Data collection instruments included the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), the Jerabek Social Skills Inventory, and the Steger and Frazier’s Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ), which has two componenets of search for meaning and presence of meaning. The therapeutic intervention was conducted based on Quilliam’s PPT psychoeducational package over eight 90-minute sessions, held twice a week. Data analysis was performed using ANCOVA in SPSS software (version 23).
Results
Descriptive statistics of the research variables for both the experimental and control groups at the pretest and posttest stages indicated that in the control group, the values of none of the variables showed notable differences between the two stages. However, in the experimental group, the levels of anxiety and the search for meaning decreased, while social skills and the presence of meaning increased. Subsequently, given the research design, Univariate Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was employed for data analysis. To this end, the assumptions were first checked and confirmed: homogeneity of variances using Levene’s test, homogeneity of regression slopes by examining the interaction between the independent variable and the pretest scores in predicting posttest scores, and normal distribution of the dependent variables using the Shapiro-Wilk test. Following this, ANCOVA was used to examine the effectiveness of PPT on anxiety, social skills, and components of meaning in life among older women. The results are reported in Table 1. According to the results, PPT significantly reduced anxiety (p=.001) and search for meaning (p=.001), while significantly increasing social skills (p=.001) and presence of meaning (p=.001) among older women in Tabriz. Based on the obtained effect sizes, PPT accounted for approximately 86% of the variance in anxiety scores, 88% in social skills scores, 93% in presence of meaning scores, and 95% in search for meaning scores.
Conclusion
PPT can be a useful tool for older women. By focusing on strengths, fostering meaning in life, and strengthening social relationships, it can help improve the mental health of older women and reduce their anxiety. Therefore, the results of the present study, in addition to contributing to a better understanding of therapeutic interventions for older women, can assist mental health professionals in improving the quality of life for this population by changing individuals’ perspectives on their internal resources and fostering a positive outlook on life. In this regard, individuals interacting with older women, such as nursing home staff, physicians, or family members, can utilize PPT techniques, such as emphasizing strengths rather than weaknesses and building positive aspects while repairing negative ones. This approach may help ensures that, in addition to improving social and communication skills and reducing anxiety in older women, they can continue to feel their lives are valuable and purposeful despite the challenges associated with aging. Ultimately, this leads to improved mental health, increased social interactions, and reduced anxiety and worry among older women, which can help alleviate the social and economic burden caused by mental health problems in this age group.
Ethical Consideration
Ethical Code
The present study was conducted with the approval of Payame Noor University, Tabriz Branch.
Financial Support
This study did not receive financial support.
Authors’ Contributions
N.Y.: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal analysis, Data curation, Writing - original draft, Writing - Review & Editing.
Conflict of Interest
The author had no conflicts of interest.
Acknowledgments
We would like to express our gratitude to all the dear individuals who participated in the present study or contributed in any way to strengthening this research.
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