The Effectiveness of Self-Working Therapy on self-criticism, internalized shame, and perfectionism in students with anxiety

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of the Self-Working therapy on self-criticism, internalized shame, and perfectionism in students with anxiety. The statistical population of the present study included all students with anxiety at the University in 2024 -2025. Among all the people who completed the Beck Anxiety Inventory and scored above 16, 30 people were randomly selected and then randomly assigned to two experimental groups (15 people) and control groups (15 people). The research design was a quasi-experimental, pre-test-post-test with a control group. The instruments used in this study included: the Self-Criticism Levels Scale (Thomson and Zuroff, 2004), the Internalized Shame Scale (Cook, 1988), the Perfectionism Questionnaire (Hill et al., 2004), and sessions of the Self-Working therapy program (Johari Fard, 2014). After randomly selecting the groups, a pre-test was conducted on the experimental group and the control group. Then, the experimental group was given a self-discipline therapy educational program intervention for 14 sessions, each session lasting 60 minutes, twice a week. The analysis of covariance method and SPSS 27 software were used to analyze the data. According to the findings of the self-criticism variables, the value was F=46.057, P<0.0001; internalized shame was F=55.537, P<0.0001; and adaptive perfectionism was F=31.725 and maladaptive perfectionism was F=61.636, P<0.0001, which indicates that the covariance analysis was generally significant and the results show that the Self-Working therapy educational program has an effect on self-criticism, internalized shame, and perfectionism in students with anxiety.

Keywords: Self-Working therapy, self-criticism, internalized shame, perfectionism, anxiety.

Johari Fard, R. & Navaser, F. (2025). The Effectiveness of Self-Working Therapy on self-criticism, internalized shame, and perfectionism in students with anxiety.IAU: Master’s thesis in clinical psychology.