Effectiveness of Cerebellar Education Method on Empathy and Spatial Ability of Children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the cerebellar education method on the empathy and spatial ability of children with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). This research was applied and semi-experimental, utilizing a control group for pre-testing, post-testing, and follow-up. The statistical population of this survey encompassed all children aged 5 to 6 years old with ODD in the city centers of Gonbad-e Kavus in 2022. The sample size was 30 patients, with 13 girls and 17 boys, who were randomly assigned to two experimental and control groups using the available sampling procedure. The research instruments included the Disorders of Children Symptom Inventory-4 (CSI-4), the Griffith Empathy Measure (GEM) and the Raven’s Progressive Matrices (RPM). The data were analyzed using analysis of variance with repeated measurements and SPSS-24 software. The results showed that the cerebellar method had a significant effect on improving empathy and Spatial ability in the post-test and follow-up stages. The findings of this study offer valuable insights into the cerebellar education method, and counselors and psychologists can implement this intervention to enhance the empathy and spatial ability of children with ODD.