The Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on Feelings of Shame, Guilt, and Loneliness among Female Students

Self-conscious emotions such as shame and guilt, as well as feelings of loneliness, are among the most common and influential experiences during adolescence and, if left untreated, may lead to persistent psychological problems. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), as a third-wave therapeutic approach, aims to enhance psychological flexibility and reduce distressing emotional experiences.
The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy on feelings of shame, guilt, and loneliness among female junior high school students in Qom, Iran.
This study employed a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design with a control group and follow-up phase. The sample consisted of 32 female students selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 16) and a control group (n = 16). Data collection instruments included the Guilt and Shame Experience Scale (GSES) and the UCLA Loneliness Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance and Bonferroni post hoc test in SPSS-26.
The findings indicated that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy significantly reduced feelings of shame, guilt, and loneliness among female students (p < .001). In addition, the interaction effect of time × group was significant for shame (F = 136.63, p < .001, η² = .82), guilt (F = 55.14, p < .001, η² = .64), and loneliness (F = 12.46, p < .001, η² = .29). Furthermore, Bonferroni test results showed that shame and loneliness scores in the experimental group significantly decreased from pretest to posttest and follow-up (p < .001). Regarding guilt, the reduction at immediate posttest was not statistically significant; however, the decrease from pretest to follow-up was significant (p < .01).
The results suggest that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy leads to significant improvement in shame and loneliness and gradual improvement in guilt among students. Despite limitations such as small sample size and convenience sampling, the findings support the effectiveness of this therapeutic approach; however, broader studies are needed to generalize the results.