The Effects of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Interventions on Emotional Disorders in Iranian Studies: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Leila  Mirzaei; Zahra  Golizade; Abolfazl  Farid

doi:10.18502/ijps.v21i1.20568

Leila Mirzaei Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Education, Islamic Azad University, Marvdasht Branch, Marvdasht, Iran
Zahra Golizade Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Education, Azarbaijan Shahid Madani University, Tabriz, Iran.
Abolfazl Farid Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Education, Azarbaijan Shahid Madani University, Tabriz, Iran.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/ijps.v21i1.20568

Keywords: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Emotional Disorders; Evidence-Based Interventions; Meta-Analysis; Psychological Disorders; Systematic Review

Abstract

Objective: This study systematically integrates and reviews the results of Iranian studies on the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for emotional disorders.

Method: To ensure a comprehensive review, relevant Iranian studies from 2001 to 2024 were identified from databases such as Google Scholar, Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, SID, Noormags, and MagIran using keywords including CBT, emotional disorders, anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, and stress.

Results: Based on the inclusion criteria, 93 effect sizes from 65 Iran-based studies were selected for analysis. The random-effects model revealed a significant overall effect size of CBT on emotional disorders, with g = 1.07, p < 0.001, and a 95% confidence interval ranging from 0.95 to 1.20. The primary analysis indicated that CBT effectively improved various emotional disorders, including anxiety (g = 1.04), depression (g = 1.09), OCD (g = 1.19), PTSD (g = 0.39), and stress (g = 1.27). Subgroup analysis showed no significant gender differences in the effectiveness of CBT, whereas meta-regression revealed a significant association between the effect size of CBT and the age of Iranian participants.

Conclusion: The CBT intervention method has been an effective treatment for emotional disorders and has significantly improved anxiety, depression, OCD, and PTSD in Iranian populations; however, its effect on stress was not statistically significant in this study.