Critique of Article:
Effectiveness of integrative and instrumental reminiscence therapies on depression symptoms reduction in institutionalized older adults: An empirical study
PA
Kaplan University

The study “Effectiveness of integrative and instrumental reminiscence therapies on depression symptoms reduction in institutionalized older adults: An empirical study”, investigates two aspects of reminiscence therapy and the reduction of depression in the elderly. Reminiscence Therapy (RT) was first developed by Butler (1963) as a psychological intervention for older adults; however, research findings regarding its therapeutic utility as inconsistent and inconclusive (Karimia, et al., 2010). Not entirely …show more content…

Pre-test/post-test designs are often used in behavioral research, primarily for the purpose of comparing groups and measuring change resulting from experimental treatments (interventions). The intervention, short form group sessions, were conducted by a master’s level therapist who was supervised by a master’s level clinical psychologist. Pretesting in this study included the MMSE, GDS-15 and a demographic questionnaire. All assessments were conducted by the clinical psychologist, who was not the therapist leading the intervention, and was blind to the subjects’ assigned intervention group. Post testing included the administration of the GDS-15 only. Participants were randomized into three groups, one group serving as the control group. Designs that involve collecting data from different groups and examining the differences between groups are also called mixed-design groups. Sample Methodology/Patient Rights The sample group for this study was obtained from volunteers who lived at the Kahrizak Nursing Home located in Iran. Participants were selected based on five inclusion and three exclusion criteria, some of which was discussed in the previous paragraph. There were 109 volunteers, 94 of whom passed the initial interview and moved on to be assessed for eligibility in the study. Forty-eight participants