Background: Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women worldwide and can have wide-ranging physical, psychological, and social consequences. The present study aimed to determine the effectiveness of group counseling based on spirituality-oriented therapy (SCGT) on pain self-efficacy, self-compassion, and psychological adjustment in women with breast cancer.
Methods: The present study employed a quasi-experimental design with a pretest-posttest structure and experimental and control groups. The statistical population consisted of women with breast cancer in Tehran in 2024. After referral to cancer treatment centers, women who had been diagnosed with breast cancer by a specialist physician were selected as the final sample. Participants completed the Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, the Self-Compassion Scale, and the Psychological Adjustment Scale. The experimental group then received an SCGT by Galanter and Siegel’s positive spirituality approach (2009), conducted in 8 group sessions, each lasting 90 minutes. The collected data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance in SPSS-27.
Findings: The results revealed that SCGT significantly increased pain self-efficacy (M = 41.72, SD = 2.29), self-compassion (M = 73.01, SD = 3.91), and psychological adjustment (M = 90.33, SD = 3.18) among women with breast cancer (p<0.001).
Conclusion: SCGT significantly improved pain self-efficacy, enhanced self-compassion, and promoted psychological adjustment in women with breast cancer. By strengthening spiritual resources and fostering a positive outlook, this intervention increased patients’ ability to adapt to the physical and psychological pressures of the disease.