Comparison of the Effectiveness of Interpersonal Psychotherapy and Cognitive–Behavioral Therapy on Health-Promoting Lifestyle and Somatization in Individuals with Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Psychology, ToJ.C., Islamic Azad University, Torbat Jam, Iran

2 PhD student, Department of Psychology, ToJ.C., Islamic Azad University, Torbat Jam, Iran

10.22034/jmpr.2026.71919.7022

Abstract

This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of interpersonal psychotherapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy on health-oriented lifestyle components and somatization in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. The present study was an applied study with a pre-test-post-test-follow-up quasi-experimental design with a control group. The statistical population included patients referred to Imam Reza Hospital in Tabriz in the second half of 2024, of which 45 people were selected through purposive sampling and randomly assigned to three groups (two experimental groups and one control group). The research tools included Walker and Hill's (1997) four-system health-oriented lifestyle questionnaire and somatization. The data were analyzed using mixed analysis of variance. The results showed that both treatment methods were effective in improving the somatization and health-oriented lifestyle components compared to the control group (p>0.5). However, cognitive-behavioral therapy was superior in reducing somatization components and physical symptoms (p>0.5). While there was no significant difference (p>0.5) between the two methods in improving health-oriented lifestyle. The effects of treatment were also stable at the follow-up stage.

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Main Subjects


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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 27 September 2026
  • Receive Date: 12 April 2026
  • Revise Date: 04 May 2026
  • Accept Date: 07 May 2026