friendship quality

This study was designed to explore the role of gender, parental raring behavior, friendship quality and shyness in the feeling of loneliness during adolescence through the ecological model of human development and the contextual-developmental perspective. 211 adolescents’ students ( 133 females, 78 males ) from five high schools in Tehran (Iran) participated in correlational research design (a non-experimental study) and completed the self-report scales including: Loneliness Scale, Short EMBU, Revised Cheek–Buss Shyness Scale, and Friendship–Unfriendship Attachment Inventory (SACRAL) . The results showed that parenting behavior, shyness, and friendship quality were correlated with loneliness. Moreover, the findings indicated that the low level of friendship quality and high level of parenting behavior in both rejection and over-controlling had a positive correlation with the high level of loneliness in adolescents. In addition, the result showed that male adolescents feel lonelier than female adolescents. The results obtained from the current study provide a number of implications, which can be beneficial in proposing intervention efforts directed toward promoting ideal development and growth during teenage years.

The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of drama therapy on friendship quality and emotion regulation in adolescents with physical disabilities. A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 40 adolescents aged 13-18 years, randomly assigned to either an intervention group receiving drama therapy (n=20) or a control group (n=20). The intervention comprised ten 60-minute sessions over three months. Measures used included the Friendship Quality Scale (FQS) and the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ), assessed at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and three-month follow-up. Data were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA and Bonferroni post-hoc tests, with analyses performed in SPSS version 27. Significant improvements were observed in the intervention group compared to the control group. For friendship quality, the intervention group’s scores increased from a mean (M) of 55.12 (SD = 5.47) at pre-intervention to 68.25 (SD = 6.23) post-intervention and slightly decreased to 66.84 (SD = 6.01) at follow-up. Emotion regulation scores in the intervention group increased from 36.45 (SD = 4.12) at pre-intervention to 45.78 (SD = 4.96) post-intervention and slightly decreased to 44.67 (SD = 4.81) at follow-up. ANOVA results showed significant main effects for group and time (p < .001), with significant interactions between time and group for both variables (p < .001). Bonferroni post-hoc tests confirmed significant pre- to post-intervention and pre- to follow-up improvements in the intervention group (p < .001). Drama therapy significantly enhances friendship quality and emotion regulation in adolescents with physical disabilities, with effects sustained at a three-month follow-up. These findings support the incorporation of drama therapy in therapeutic programs for this population to address their unique psychosocial challenges.