Effects of group cognitive-behavioral therapy on psychological distress of awaiting-trial prison inmates.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The level of psychological distress among awaiting-trial inmates is rapidly increasing in Nigeria. Studies have recommended increasing attention and additional psychological intervention that could improve the psychological wellbeing of prisoners. This study evaluates the effect of cognitive behavioral therapy on psychological distress among awaiting-trial prison inmates in Nigeria. METHODS: A total of 34 awaiting-trial prison inmates in Enugu state Nigeria were used as the study participants. Two measures (perceived emotional distress inventory and general health Questionnaire) were used for data collection. Repeated measures with analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to examine the effects of the intervention. Effect sizes were also reported with partial Eta Squared ((Equation is included in full-text article.)). RESULTS: The result showed that there was no significant difference in psychological distress between the treatment and no-intervention groups. The results showed that CBT had a significant effect on psychological distress of awaiting-trial prison inmates when compared to their counterparts in the no-intervention group at Time 2. Additionally, the efficacy of CBT on the psychological distress of awaiting-trial prison inmates was significantly sustained at the follow-up measurements (Time 3). CONCLUSION: This study suggests that cognitive behavioral therapy is an effective intervention for decreasing psychological distress among awaiting-trial prison inmates. Additionally, the impactful benefit of the intervention can persist in overtime. Therefore, cognitive behavioral therapists can further explore the efficacy of CBT using various cultures.

Effectiveness of music therapy with relaxation technique on stress management as measured by perceived stress scale.

BACKGROUND: Living in Nigerian environment is enough stress. In our time, many students could not cope with the stress of school environment like ours and others are still suffering from different health problems attributed to stress. Based on this, we investigated the effect of music therapy with relaxation technique on stress management among university students in southeastern Nigeria. METHODS: Participants for the study were 142 university students in the Southeastern Nigeria. Perceived stress scale (PSS) was used to measure the symptoms of stress. Statistical tool used was repeated measures with analysis of variance (ANOVA) to ascertain the effectiveness of music therapy with relaxation. Among other tools used was Partial η to examine the effect sizes and level of changes inthemanagement of stress across groups. RESULTS: The finding indicated that there were no baseline differences in levels of stress management between participants in the treatment and waitlist control conditions. Results revealed significant improvement in stress management for participants in the music therapy with relaxation group, whereas the waitlist control group showed no significant change in their score over the same period. Furthermore, the positive effect of music therapy with relaxation was maintained at follow-up. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that the efficacy of music therapy with relaxation technique for improving the students' stress management can be consistent at follow-up. Hence, music therapists, counsellors and psychotherapists should continue to investigate the beneficial effects of music therapy with relaxation on stress management among university students in every part of the world.