Prevention of depression in freshman nursing students based on group coagnitive - behavioral therapy: A randomized...

University students are frequently vulnerable to psychological disorders, particularly depression, which may arise from both academic and personal stressors. Given the adverse consequences of depression on students' well-being and academic performance, this study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of group-based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in reducing depressive symptoms among nursing students.

This pre-test post-test clinical trial study utilized both intervention and control groups. The sampling method employed was a census, and participants were assigned to these groups through a simple randomization method executed by a computer utilizing a table of random numbers. A total of 30 students, who were in their first semester at the Nursing and Midwifery College in 2019, were enrolled in the study. Beck's Depression Inventory was administered to the participants on three separate occasions. The intervention comprised eight 90-minutemin sessions, while the control group did not receive any training. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS statistical software, employing independent sample t-tests, Chi-square tests, and ANOVA. A significance level of P < 0.05 was used to determine statistical significance.

The mean depression score after the intervention in the intervention group was 13.7 ± 2.9, and in the control group was18.4 ± 5.9, which showed a significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.001). The analysis showed that in the intervention group, one year after the end of the intervention (19.4 ± 5.9), there was a significant increase in the depression score compared to immediately after the intervention (13.7 ± 2.9) (P = 0.001).

The results indicated that CBT had positive effects on students' mental health and reduced depression.

The trial was registered with Iranian registry of clinical trial and registration number IRCT Code: IRCT20160404027216N7((Date of first registration: (08/12/2018).