The present study examined the effectiveness of participation in group existential analysis sessions on worry. A high level of worry affects various aspects of existence, including biological, psychological and social changes that result in unadaptability. Existential analysis sessions focused on exploring free will, loneliness, death and the meaning of life, the factors which are considered the definite outcomes and phenomena of human’s existence by the existence-oriented psychotherapists. For this research, a pre-post test model was implemented together with a control group and with a semi-experimental method. 30 of female undergraduate students of Razi university, who were volunteers to participate in the research, were assigned randomly into two groups: an experimental group and a control group. 15 persons of experimental group participated in 9sessions, each lasting 90-minutes, during 6 weeks. The 15 persons in the control group did not receive any intervention during this period. The data collection tool was the why worry questionnaire (WWQ-II). The data analysis was performed by analysis of covariance (ANCOVA(. The findings of the research indicate the ineffectiveness of participation in group existential analysis sessions in reducing worry in female students. Thus, participation in these sessions had no statistically significant effectiveness in reducing worry.

Background: Improving the psychotherapies for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is dependent on a deeper understanding of the relations between symptoms and associated factors. According to the novelty of the emotion focused therapy (EFT) concept, background of literatures indicative the importance role of emotions and the efficacy of therapy in psychological disorders. But does EFT help effective reducing worry and self-criticism in individuals with GAD?
Aims: The aim of this study was performed to the efficacy of EFT on worry and self-criticism in individuals with GAD.
Methods: The present study was single case experimental design of non-concurrent multiple baseline. The statistical population of the study included individuals referred to one of the psychology clinics in tehran in 2020. 4 participant were selected by convenience sampling and during 16-20 sessions of EFT (Timulak & McElvany, 2018), were answered to worry pennsylvania questionnaire (Meyer, Miller, Metzger & Borkovec, 1990) and self-criticism (Gilbert, Clarke, Hempel, Miles & Irons, 2004). Data analysis was performed by visual inspection, percentage of non-overlapping data, reliable change index and clinically meaningful.
Results: EFT reduced the variable of worry (%61/08 improvement percentage) and its effect was maintained until the end of the two-month follow-up period (%57/91 improvement percentage). As well as, therapy caused reduce the variable of self-criticism (%83/19 improvement percentage) and the effect of which was maintained until the end of the follow-up period (%79/72 improvement percentage). Their change in reliable index these variables also indicated that these changes were significant (P<0/05).
Conclusion: According to results in present study about the efficacy of EFT on reduce worry and self-criticism, this issue arises that the therapy with change emotion and rebuilding unwanted emotional experiences, caused reduce symptoms and possible psychological problems in individuals with GAD.

Background: Postpartum Depression (PPD) may affect mother-infant attachment and other family relationships, and may even threaten the safety and health of mother, infant and other children. Despite the relative efficacy of most cognitive therapy methods in controlling or reducing the symptoms of PPD, their application has faced many shortcomings due to a lack of explanation of the main cause of the disorder and deficiency in providing appropriate treatment strategies. Also, less research has been done on the effect of detached mindfulness-based metacognitive therapy on meta-worry, cognitive distortion, and other symptoms of PPD.
Aims: The present study aimed to determine the efficacy of metacognitive therapy based on detached mindfulness on reducing meta-worry and interpersonal cognitive distortion in women with PPD.
Methods: This research was conducted by quasi-experimental method using a two-group pretest-posttest design. The statistical population of the study was all women referred to Golestan Urban Health Center in Ardabil City from 2018 to 2019. Sampling method was convenience sampling. Using Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) (1996) and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) (1987), 40 people were selected (20 in experimental group and 20 in control group). Then, for the experimental group, the protocol of detached mindfulness-based metacognitive therapy was performed during 8 sessions in Golestan Urban Health Center in Ardabil City, and the results were analyzed based on meta-worry and interpersonal cognitive distortion scales by analysis of covariance (ANCOVA).
Results: The results showed that in the experimental group the average posttest scores of meta-worry and interpersonal cognitive distortion were significantly different from the control group. In other words, after therapeutic intervention meta-worry (F = 317.62; P = 0.001 <0.05) and interpersonal cognitive distortion (F = 331.39; P = 0.001 <0.05) meaningfully decreased in the experimental group.
Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that detached mindfulness-based metacognitive therapy, by improving the thinking process, identifying negative metacognitive and correcting beliefs, and providing appropriate cognitive responses, is an effective therapeutic approach in treating PPD symptoms and reducing meta-worry and interpersonal cognitive distortion.

Background: Illness Anxiety Disorder (IAD), is a type of worry about the existence or occurrence of serious medical diseases. worry, alexithymia, intolerance of uncertainty and cognitive emotion regulation strategies can be effective factors in the development and persistence of mental disorders such as illness anxiety. Since individuals with IAD suffer from many problems, identifying the influencing and predicting factors of IAD simultaneously in research are considered important.
Aims: The purpose of the present study was to predict illness anxiety symptoms based on worry, alexithymia, intolerance of uncertainty and cognitive emotion regulation strategies.
Methods: The present study was descriptive correlation and the statistical population included all people living in Tehran between the ages of 20 and 60 in 2021. A total of 414 individuals (344 females, 70 males) participated in the study. Participants were asked to complete the Illness Anxiety Scale (Besharat, 2011), Penn State Worry Questionnaire (Meyer et al., 1990), Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (Bagby et al., 1994), Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (Carleton et al., 2007) and Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (Garnefski & Kraaij, 2007). The data were analyzed by Pearson correlation coefficient and stepwise regression methods by SPSS₂₇.
Results: worry, alexithymia, intolerance of uncertainty and maladaptive emotion regulation strategies had a significant positive association with illness anxiety symptoms (P< 0.05). This result was reversed for adaptive emotion regulation strategies; revealing that this type of strategies had a significant negative association with illness anxiety symptoms (P< 0.05). Furthermore, the cognitive emotion regulation strategies were removed from the model due to the lack of predictive power, but worry, alexithymia and intolerance of uncertainty have the ability to predict the illness anxiety symptoms.
Conclusion: Based on the research findings, worry, alexithymia and intolerance of uncertainty can predict illness anxiety symptoms. These results can be useful in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of IAD.

Background: It seems that despite the significant role of worry and uncertainty intolerance in occurrence, maintaining and intensify the symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder, few interventions have targeted such variables.
Aims: The aim of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of schema therapy on worry states and intolerance of uncertainty in patient with generalized anxiety disorder.
Methods: The research method was a semi-experimental pretest-posttest design with a 45-day follow-up stage by control group. The study population included all people with generalized anxiety disorder referred to 40 psychological counseling centers in the 18th district of Tehran in 2023 which among those 34 cases were selected through available sampling and they were randomly divided into experimental and control groups. The Experimental group received schema therapy (Young, 2008) sessions for eight 90-minutes sessions. All participants were assessed by the generalized anxiety disorder scale- 7 item (Spitzer et al, 2006), Pen state worry questionnaire (Meyer et al, 1990) and Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (Freeston et al, 1994). Data were analyzed by SPSS-24 software and MANOVA with repeated measure test.
Results: The results demonstrated that schema therapy is effective in reducing worry states and intolerance of uncertainty (p< 0.01) and that this effect is long-lasting (p< 0.01).
Conclusion: According to the findings of the study, therapists and clinical specialists should consider schema therapy as an effective treatment strategy for generalized anxiety disorder.