Long-term effects of acceptance and commitment-based psychoeducation in nursing students: A randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND

Nursing students often experience high psychological distress, which can affect their well-being, academic performance, and patient care. Despite its prevalence, sustainable and evidence-based mental health interventions remain scarce in nursing education.

AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the long-term effects of a psychoeducation program based on the Acceptance and Commitment Approach on psychological distress, psychological flexibility, mindfulness, and valued living in nursing students.

DESIGN

This randomized controlled trial is a longitudinal design with a one-year follow-up period.

SETTINGS: The study was conducted between November 2022 and February 2024 at an undergraduate School of Nursing located in the western region of Türkiye.

PARTICIPANTS

Participants comprised 80 undergraduate nursing students who were randomly allocated to either an intervention group receiving the psychoeducation program (n = 40) or a control group receiving no intervention (n = 40).

METHODS

The psychoeducation program comprised six weekly one-hour sessions structured around the core principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Data were collected at five time points: baseline, post-intervention, and at 1-month, 6-month, and 1-year follow-ups. Psychological distress, psychological flexibility, mindfulness, and valued living were assessed using the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale-21, Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II, Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, and Valuing Questionnaire, respectively. A two-way mixed-design ANOVA was employed for data analysis.

RESULTS

Students in the intervention group showed sustained and favorable changes in mental health compared with the control group. Depression, anxiety, and stress showed marked decreases over time, with the strongest patterns observed for depression and stress. Psychological flexibility, mindfulness, and valued living showed improvements, and these gains were largely maintained throughout the follow-up period.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest potential longer-term benefits that extend beyond short-term symptom change to core self-regulation processes relevant to nursing education. Given its feasibility and minimal resource requirements, the program may offer a practical option for integration into routine nursing curricula to support student well-being. Future studies across diverse institutions and delivery formats, including digital and blended models, may help determine how this program could be integrated into nursing education.

REGISTRATION: The study has been registered with the National Library of Medicine Clinical Trials (NCT05653674 date 22.11.2022).