The Effect of Reality Therapy on Resilience and Self-Efficacy of Prisoners: A Randomized Controlled Trial Study

This study aimed to determine the effect of reality therapy training on self-efficacy and resilience in male prisoners. To this end, a randomized controlled trial was conducted with a pre-test, post-test, and a control group. The research questionnaires including the Scherer self-efficacy questionnaire and the Connor-Davidson resilience questionnaire were administered to 300 prisoners. Of them, 78 prisoners who met the inclusion criteria were selected and randomly assigned to the intervention and control groups. The intervention group attended ten 90-min sessions on reality therapy training per week. At the end of the training period, the study groups were required to attend the post-test. The data were analyzed with the SPSS software version 23 and through an independent t-test and a paired t-test. The results at the post-test phase showed a significant increase of self-efficacy and resilience in the experimental group, as compared to the control group (p < .01). Therefore, it is recommended for authorities to improve the self-efficacy and resilience of prisoners through reality therapy trainings.