The Effect of Group Therapy Based on Psychodrama Approach on Anxiety and Sleep Quality in University Entrance Exam Candidates

Objective: The present study aimed to examine the effect of group therapy based on the psychodrama approach on anxiety and sleep quality in students preparing for the national university entrance examination. Materials and Methods: This study employed a quasi-experimental design with pretest-posttest and a control group. The statistical population included all university entrance exam candidates who experienced anxiety and sleep quality problems and had referred to the Mehraban Clinic. From this population, 30 students were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to experimental (n = 15) and control (n = 15) groups. The participants in the experimental group attended ten 60-minute sessions of group therapy based on psychodrama. Data were collected at two stages—pretest and posttest—using the Beck Anxiety Inventory (Beck, 1990) and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (Buysse et al., 1989). The collected data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) and multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) via SPSS software. Findings: The results of ANCOVA indicated that group therapy based on the psychodrama approach had a significant effect on reducing anxiety and improving sleep quality in students preparing for the university entrance examination. Conclusion: Accordingly, psychodrama appears to be an effective method in reducing anxiety symptoms and enhancing sleep quality among university entrance exam candidates.