Introduction: Single parent families, especially, those headed by single mothers are becoming increasingly common around the world especially in Malaysia. Single mothers generally suffer from poorer mental health, job discrimination, abuse and neglect. Hence, they often experience high anxiety, depression, and stress. This calls for research to empower their mental wellbeing. The present study examined the effectiveness of creative group counselling in increasing self-compassion, and decreasing depression, anxiety and stress among single mothers. Methods: A quasi experimental pre-test post-test design was employed in the study. Research participants consisted of 36 single mothers placed in two experimental and two control groups. The instruments used were Self-Compassion Scale and Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale. A self-compassion module was developed that comprised creative therapeutic activities which was administered to the participants in the experimental groups via a 7-session group counselling programme. Participants in the control groups, on the other hand, took part in guidance activities. Semi structured interviews were also performed to gather feedback on the impact of the creative intervention from three single mothers. Results: Findings revealed that creative group counselling successfully increased the level of self-compassion among single mothers. Additionally, the depression, stress and anxiety scores of single mothers were lower after joining the group counselling programme. Furthermore, three themes emerged from the present study which are i) be kind to oneself; ii) mistakes are part of life; and iii) self-transformation. Conclusion: It is evident that the implementation of creative group counselling improves the mental wellbeing of single mothers.

Youth with physical disabilities may have concerns about their bodily functions and appearance, which do not typically conform to sociocultural norms. A mounting body of research confirmed that physical disability has an adverse impact on self-esteem development. This study aimed at developing a cognitive therapy module for professional counsellors to help Malaysian youth with physical disabilities enhance their self-esteem. The methodology comprised three stages: (i) self-esteem baseline assessment; (ii) module design and development; and (iii) module evaluation. First, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was used to collect data from 110 youth with physical disabilities. The results revealed that participants had moderate levels of self-esteem (mean, x̄ = 30.16). This finding highlighted the need to increase the level of self-esteem among youth with physical disabilities. The second stage involved the development of the cognitive therapy module for self-esteem enhancement (CTSEE) using Sidek’s model of module development, which resembles the ADDIE framework. The third stage involved evaluating the module’s content validity and reliability. Findings showed that the therapy module has high content validity and reliability. The overall findings demonstrate that the CTSEE module can be applied by professional counsellors to enhance self-esteem among youth with physical disabilities.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy