The Effect of a Happiness Training Program on Sense of Coherence and Perceived Fatigue in Patients With Type II...

Patients with type II diabetes often face numerous challenges, including fatigue and decreased sense of coherence (SOC). Given the chronic nature of this disease, changing the mental health aspects can be one of the most significant changes for individuals with type II diabetes. Therefore, this research aimed to study the effect of a happiness training program on the SOC and perceived fatigue among individuals with type II diabetes.

This semi-experimental research involved two groups and was performed on 72 participants diagnosed with type II diabetes. Eligible patients were recruited through a convenience sampling method. Subsequently, participants were randomly allocated to either the intervention or control group using a lottery-based method, ensuring equal probability of assignment for each individual. This randomization helped reduce selection bias and ensure comparable groups. After obtaining informed consent, the demographic questionnaire, the multidimensional fatigue inventory (MFI), and Antonovsky's SOC scale were completed. The intervention group received happiness skills training intervention in a group for 10 1-h sessions, twice a week, and the control group received routine interventions of the center. Data analysis was performed in SPSS software.

The mean SOC value significantly improved in the intervention group from 53.81 ± 9.74 to 65 ± 8.48, which was significant as indicated by the paired t-test (p = 0.000). Moreover, the mean perceived fatigue score in the intervention group reached from 61.32 ± 15.55 to 53.67 ± 15.29, which was statistically significant, as indicated by the results of the paired t-test (p = 0.000).

It can be inferred that happiness training contributes to enhancing the SOC and reducing perceived fatigue to enhance and cultivate a healthy relationship with the self, healthy interpersonal relationships in life, and self-confidence.