Background: Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD) is a relatively new diagnostic category in the field of child and adolescent psychiatry, characterized by episodes of severe negative emotionality, difficulty in emotion regulation, and associated cognitive and academic consequences. Given the pervasive impact of this disorder on the mental health and daily functioning of adolescents, it is essential to investigate and compare the efficacy of effective therapeutic interventions to mitigate these outcomes.
Aim: Addressing the existing research gap in this area, the present study aimed to compare the effectiveness of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) on the cognitive, emotional, and academic functioning of adolescent girls with Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder.
Methodology: This study employed an experimental, pre-test, post-test design with a waiting-list control group and a one-month follow-up period. The statistical population consisted of female high school students with DMDD in Sirjan during the 2023-2024 academic year, selected via purposive sampling. Out of 166 students, 60 participants were randomly assigned to two treatment groups (DBT skills training and Anger Management-based CBT) and a waiting-list group (20 participants per group) after screening based on DSM-5-TR criteria. Interventions were delivered in 12 group sessions, each lasting 150 minutes. Assessments utilized included the Affective Reactivity Index (Stringaris, 2012), the Five-Factor Impulsivity Scale (Lynam, 2006), the Trait Meta-Mood Scale (Salovey et al., 1995), the Go/No-Go Software Test (Lang et al., 1984), the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (Berg & Grant, 1984), the Academic Procrastination Questionnaire (Solomon & Rothblum, 1984), and the Social Cognition Questionnaire (Nejati, Kamari & Jafari, 2018). Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA), and the Bonferroni test.
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